By Nan Greenough One of the most beautiful pieces in the Winnetka Historical Society’s art collection is an exquisite large oil portrait of a young woman in a Chinese robe. This summer the painting was the object of a quest when Charles Rudolph, the artist’s grandson, came from New Mexico to Winnetka to visit the […]
Tag Archives: Artists
Eliot and Fairfield Porter, American Artists from Winnetka
Categories: Gazette
By Duff Peterson Updated July 2022 Photographer Eliot Porter (1901-1990) and his brother, painter Fairfield Porter (1907-1975) – two important American artists of the twentieth century – grew up in Winnetka, IL at 1085 Sheridan Road atop the ravines. Eliot Porter first gained nationwide recognition as a nature photographer in the 1960s, due in part to his work with the […]
Anita Willets-Burnham
Categories: Gazette
Gazette Article by Robyn DeKoven Grossberg, June 1999 “Doing what can’t be done is the glory of living.” With that gently defiant introduction, Anita Willets-Burnham sweeps her readers away on a whirlwind journey through the pages of her family’s travelogue in book form, Round the World on a Penny. First published in 1933, the book chronicles […]
Herman and Willa Menzel
Categories: Gazette
By Barbara Joyce for the Gazette, Winter 1996 Updated July 2022 It was an unconventional relationship. He stayed home, she commuted to the city. He painted, cooked, gardened, and helped with their child. She took the 8:20 a.m. train to her job as an art designer on State Street and paid the bills. He was […]
Abbott Pattison
Categories: Gazette
Gazette Article by: Barbara Joyce Appeared in the Gazette: Spring 1998 What does a sculptor say when people claim that modern works are too difficult to understand? “It’s hard to explain,” responded Abbott Pattison, world-renowned sculptor and former Winnetka resident. In a recent telephone conversation with Pattison in Italy, he said, “Things are different now […]
Ivan Albright
Categories: Gazette
Portrayer of Darkness and Decay Gazette Article by:Barbara Joyce Appeared in the Gazette: Summer 1997 Longtime Winnetka residents may remember the large log cabin that once stood at 1258 Scott Avenue. The scale and style of this house stood apart from the stucco, brick, and frame homes of the neighborhood. In a similar way, the […]
Pauline Dohn Rudolph: Winnetkan and National Artist
Categories: Gazette
Gazette Article by Maura Rogan, Fall/Winter 2005 Updated July 2022 The arts were in her blood. Pauline Amalie Dohn was born in Chicago in 1865 to Adolf W. and Pauline Dohn. Adolf, who immigrated to Chicago from Germany in 1853, was the first conductor of the Apollo Musical Club in Chicago and an organist for […]
Winnetka’s Artistic Past
Categories: Gazette
Gazette Article by: Nan Greenough Appeared in the Gazette: Fall 2009 <img src=”images/35t.jpg” class = “right” />The Historical Society’s new exhibit, _Palette of Our Past: Artists in Winnetka_, features artists who put Winnetka on the map in the fine arts world. Educated at some of the most highly-regarded art schools, exhibiting their work throughout the […]
WHS and the Lady Elgin
Categories: Gazette
Gazette Column by Helen Weaver Appeared in the Gazette: Fall 2010 We’ve all heard of “six degrees of separation” but how about three degrees of connection? Hanging over the fireplace in the Evanich Room at 411 Linden is a painting with links to two our our past exhibits Palette of Our Past: Artists in Winnetka […]
Charles Haag
Categories: Collections, Gazette
Gazette Article by Stephanie Giordano, Spring/Summer 2007 Updated July 2022 The Historical Society’s 2007 acquisition of four works by Winnetka sculptor Charles Haag spurred research into his life and art. Haag’s local legacy includes an enigmatic sculpture on Sheridan Road, an unusual grave marker in Christ Church cemetery, and two intriguing houses. Charles Haag was […]