Our Little Art Museum: July 2012

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Bertha Boynton Lum: Woodcuts, Part 3

+ JMJ +

Bertha Boynton Lum

Printmaker and Illustrator

American (1869–1954)

Biography from Scholten Japanese Art and Bertha-Lum.org:

Pine Tree Fairy

by Bertha Lum, 1916

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Bertha Lum authored and illustrated several books of Japanese fairy tales, among them "Gods, Goblins and Ghosts" in 1922 and "Gangplanks to the East" in 1936.

Song of the Brook

by Bertha Lum, 1916

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Her work received honors in Rome, Paris and Portugal and is represented in the Library of Congress, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Achenbach Foundation for the Graphic Arts.

Wind Sprite

by Bertha Lum, 1920

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Click here to go to Part 1 of this post.

Click here to go to Part 2 of this post.

Bertha Boynton Lum: Woodcuts, Part 2

+ JMJ +

Bertha Boynton Lum

Printmaker and Illustrator

American (1869–1954)

Biography from Scholten Japanese Art and Bertha-Lum.org:

Japonisme had a major influence on nineteenth-century Western artists. Bertha Lum fell under its spell, and she endeavored to spend as much time as possible in Japan, even honeymooning there in 1903. There, she discovered the charm of Japanese woodblock prints.

Geisha Girls

by Bertha Lum, 1908

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

But instruction in Japanese woodblock techniques was hard to come by, as Lum discovered when she combed the city of Yokohama for printmakers. Returning to Japan in 1907 for several months, she gained an education in block printing, learning the techniques of carving from a master block cutter in Tokyo.

Sisters

by Bertha Lum, 1907

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

She had a thorough understanding of color woodcut and opted for the traditional division of labor, a system where the artist, carver, printer, and publisher collaborated to produce a print.

Kites

by Bertha Lum, 1912

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

She combined Art Nouveau with the appealing art of the Ukiyo-e (Japanese woodblock print or painting depicting everyday life from the 17th to 19th centuries) to develop an exotic style with a bright, yet subtle, palette.

Chinese Hat

by Bertha Lum, 1924

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Lum moved easily within Japanese society. Hers were the only foreign woodcuts in the Tenth Annual Art Exhibition in Tokyo in 1912.

The Bridge, 1912

By Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut

The Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA)

Her color woodcuts were awarded the silver medal at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition and her work was included in the 1919 Exhibition of Etchings and Block Prints at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Fishermen, 1912

By Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut

The Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA)

Click here to go to Part 1 of this post.

Click here to go to Part 3 of this post.

Bertha Boynton Lum: Woodcuts, Part 1

+ JMJ +

Bertha Boynton Lum

Printmaker and Illustrator

American (1869–1954)

Biography from TERRA Foundation for American Art and IFPDA:

Bertha Lum ranks among the important twentieth-century American printmakers who were inspired by Asian culture, particularly the style and masterful technique of Japanese prints.

Born Bertha Boynton Bull and raised in Iowa and Minnesota, Lum began her formal art education in 1895 at the Art Institute of Chicago's prestigious school, where she studied design and later, in 1901, figure drawing.

Peter, 1912 (Lum's daughter, baby Eleanor, called Peter.)

Color Woodcut by Bertha Boynton Lum

The Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA)

She also received training from newspaper illustrator and printmaker Frank Holme (1868-1904). Lum's aesthetic sensibilities were further shaped by the display of Japanese prints she saw at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago and by Arthur Wesley Dow's influential textbook Composition (1899), which promoted Japanese color woodcuts as models.

Cherry Blossoms, 1912 by Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut, From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

In 1903, she married Burt Lum, a Minneapolis lawyer. During their honeymoon trip to Japan, the aspiring artist collected ukiyo-e woodcut prints and sought out artisans practicing traditional printmaking techniques.

"A Beautiful Waitress" by Eizan KIKUKAWA (1787-1867)

Image dates originally to Edo era (1738-1868). This "re-carved" Meiji-edition print was published 1903-1906.

In 1904, Lum made her first prints inspired by Japan and its graphic tradition.

A Rainy Twilight by Bertha Lum, 1905

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Lum returned to Tokyo in 1907 and spent two months studying with master block cutter Bonkotsu Igami (1875-1933), followed by extensive lessons with master printers on intricate Japanese color printing technique.

O Fuji San by Bertha Lum, 1907

Color Woodcut, From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

In 1911, Lum, accompanied by her two daughters, again traveled to Japan to work with master cutters and printers in making print editions using traditional techniques.

Through the Night, 1912 by Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut, From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

In 1912, she was the only foreign artist included in the Tenth Annual Art Exhibition in Ueno Park, Tokyo, where her works were admired for their distinctive blending of western and Japanese styles.

Bamboo Road, 1912 By Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut, From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Successful solo exhibitions at Chicago and New York galleries followed. At the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, Lum's prints received a silver medal; she was recognized among other awardees who excelled in color printmaking, namely Gustave Baumann, Helen Hyde, and Dow.

Snowballs, 1912 By Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut, The Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA)

Until 1933 (and intermittently thereafter), Lum's color woodcuts were exhibited to acclaim in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.

Two Children, 1912

(Undoubtedly Lum's daughters, Catherine and baby, Eleanor, called Peter.)

By Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut, The Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA)

Lum lived alternately in the United States and abroad. She made further visits to Japan from 1915 - 1936 to make prints.

Wind and Rain, 1912 By Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut, From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Lum was divorced by the early or mid-twenties. From 1922 to 1924, she lived with her daughters in China, where she learned Chinese printmaking methods and created images inspired by Chinese scenes.

China Boy by Bertha Lum, 1904

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

In 1954, Lum joined her daughter's family in Genoa, Italy. She died there several months later, leaving a graphic legacy of 158 color woodcuts in addition to watercolors and illustrations.

Magic Carpet by Bertha Lum, 1912

From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Though not the most famous turn-of-the-century artist, whose works no longer have the appreciation and notoriety they used to, Lum's art is of a rare subtlety and elegance.

Rain, 1912 By Bertha Boynton Lum

Color Woodcut, From the Hanga and Torii Galleries

Red haired, with green eyes and a strong personality, she managed to impose her works in Asia as well as America. Her very personal style pleased the two cultures at the beginning of the last century, and it still strikes a cord today. Just look how difficult it is to find any of her works on sale and how high the asking price is.