Martha Visser't Hooft (née Hamlin) (1906-1994) was an American painter and teacher. She was known for her modernist paintings, as well as contributions to artists societies in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...

Early life

Visser't Hooft (née Hamiln) was born in Buffalo, New York, to a family of wealthy intellectuals. Deeply involved in all aspects of civic life, her parents, Chauncey J. Hamlin and Emily Gray Hamlin, had interests and involvements including the arts and sciences as well as activism and community service.

Education

Visser't Hooft left for Paris in 1920 to study art at the

Académie Julian The () was a private art school for painting and sculpture founded in Paris, France, in 1867 by French painter and teacher Rodolphe Julian (1839–1907). The school was active from 1868 through 1968. It remained famous for the number and qual ...

. She left for New York in 1926 to study at the

Parsons School of Design The Parsons School of Design is a private art and design college under The New School located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhattan art ...

, shortly after switching to the John Murray Anderson School of Theater Design. During this time, she had an affair with the Russian artist Boris Grigoriev, although there are conflicting reports of whether this happened in New York or Paris.

Early career

Following her schooling, Visser't Hooft travelled with her parents and sister, Mary Hamlin Goodwin, to

Taos, New Mexico Taos () is a town in Taos County, New Mexico, Taos County, in the north-central region of New Mexico in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Initially founded in 1615, it was intermittently occupied until its formal establishment in 1795 by Santa Fe ...

in 1928. Ultimately, her sister would settle in Taos with her family, where she would become a member of the Taos Art Colony. Visser't Hooft subsequently returned on several occasions to visit her, meeting artists such as

Georgia O'Keeffe Georgia Totto O'Keeffe (November 15, 1887 March 6, 1986) was an American Modernism, modernist painter and drafter, draftswoman whose career spanned seven decades and whose work remained largely independent of major art movements. Called the "M ...

Andrew Dasburg Andrew Michael Dasburg (4 May 1887 – 13 August 1979) was an American modernist painter and "one of America's leading early exponents of cubism". Biography Dasburg was born in 1887 in Paris. He emigrated from Germany to New York City with ...

, and

Frieda Lawrence Frieda Lawrence (August 11, 1879 – August 11, 1956) was a German author and wife of the British novelist D. H. Lawrence. Life Emma Maria Frieda Johanna Freiin (Baroness) von Richthofen (also known under her married names as Frieda Weekley, Fri ...

. At this time, she also made several paintings of the landscape.

Mid-career

In 1933, Visser’t Hooft co-founded the Patteran Society, created as a progressive arts society in Buffalo. Through the late 1940s and 1950s, her work exhibited internationally through the Contemporary Arts Gallery in New York. From 1956 to 1958 she taught at the University of Buffalo.

Late career

A solo retrospective of Visser't Hooft's paintings and drawings was held in 1973 at the Charles Burchfield Center. Her work was later exhibited in the same venue as part of a Patteran Society group show in 1975. In 1991, a major retrospective of her works was held at the David Anderson Gallery in Buffalo. For this show an illustrated catalogue was produced by The Poetry/Rare Books Collection and The

State University of New York at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo (commonly referred to as UB, University at Buffalo, and sometimes SUNY Buffalo) is a public research university in Buffalo and Amherst, New York, United States. The university was founded in 1846 a ...

. Essays were contributed by Robert J. Bertholf and Albert L. Michaels, and included commentary by the artist.

Collections

Visser't Hooft's paintings are collected across the United States. Public collections include the

Albright Knox Art Gallery The Buffalo AKG Art Museum, formerly known as the Albright–Knox Art Gallery, is an art museum located adjacent to Delaware Park, Buffalo, New York, United States. The museum shows modern art and contemporary art. It is directly opposite Buffa ...

, the

Whitney Museum of American Art The Whitney Museum of American Art, known informally as "The Whitney", is a Modern art, modern and Contemporary art, contemporary American art museum located in the Meatpacking District, Manhattan, Meatpacking District and West Village neighbor ...

, the

Burchfield Penney Art Center The Burchfield Penney Art Center, or just the Burchfield Penney, is an arts and educational institution part of Buffalo State University, located adjacent to the main campus in Buffalo, New York, United States. Dedicated to the art and visi ...

, and the

Columbia Museum of Art The Columbia Museum of Art is an art museum in the American city of Columbia, South Carolina. History The Columbia Museum of Art was originally in the 1908 private residence of the city's Taylor family. Located on Senate Street in Columbia, ad ...

Personal life

Visser't Hooft married Franciscus Visser 't Hooft, a Dutch chemist, in 1928. They had three children.

Legacy

Her archives are held by the

in Buffalo, New York.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vissert Hooft, Martha 1906 births 1994 deaths Artists from Buffalo, New York Académie Julian alumni American modern painters 20th-century American women painters 20th-century American painters