Meet “John Marin”

Early American modernist artist, born in Rutherford, New Jersey on December 23, 1870. After the death of his mom, nine days later, he was raised by his aunts who resided in Weehawken, New Jersey.

From 1899 to 1901, Marin attended the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia where he studied with several accomplished artists such as Thomas Pollock Anshutz, Hugh Henry Breckenridge and William Merritt Chase.

In 1905, after traveling to Europe, Marin got his first exposure to modern art in Paris and exhibited his work in the “Salon” which between 1748 and 1890 was one of the greatest annual or biennial art events in the Western world. Marin remained in Europe for six years and painted in Netherlands, Belgium, England and Italy. One of Marin’s trademarks, which he mastered in Europe, was a special and unique type of watercolor.

From 1909 until 1946, Alfred Steiglitz, American photographer and modern art promoter, showed Marin's work almost every year in one of his many New York galleries.

In 1936, Marin had a retrospective show at the Museum of Modern Art and later in life achieved tremendous prestige as an American painter. In 1950, Marin was honored by the University of Maine and Yale University with honorary degrees of Doctor of Fine Arts.

In his last years, Marin resided in Cliffside Park, New Jersey and maintained a summer home in Addison, Maine where he died on October 1, 1953 at the age of 82. He is buried at Fairview Cemetery in Fairview, New Jersey. His work is currently displayed at Ogunquit Museum of American Art in Maine, one of this country's most prestigious art museums.

(Information provided by Rod Leith, Rutherford Historian)

Editing by Elisa Rosa

John Marin taken by Alfred Stieglitz in 1922

The Brooklyn Bridge by John Marin (1912)