Frank Duveneck

Henry James, Sr., about 1881

oil on canvas

30 x 21 ½ in.

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Francis Bott Duveneck

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Born in Covington, Kentucky, Frank Duveneck began his art training as an apprentice to a church decorator in Cincinnati before traveling to Munich to study at the Royal Academy. While there Duveneck shared a studio with William Merrrit Chase. After returning to Cincinnati, he painted portraits, decorated churches and taught art classes.  He returned to Europe and opened an art school in Munich and Polling in Bavaria where he trained Americans who became known as the “Duveneck Boys.”  He also opened a studio in Italy and spent winters in Florence and summers in Venice.  His painting began to change from the dark interiors of his Munich style to the brighter palette of Impressionism, but much of his work continued to exhibit the style of his Munich training.  At the turn of the century Duveneck returned to Cincinnati and taught at the Cincinnati Art Academy, spending summers in Gloucester, Massachusetts between trips to Italy, France, and Germany. 

Duveneck’s brush may have been the freest of the American painters trained in the Munich style.  His rapid, sketch-like manner was admirably suited to informal portrait study, for it allowed the artist to directly capture the sitter’s appearance and character.  Duveneck probably painted this portrait of Henry James, Sr., the father of philosopher William James and writer Henry James, in Florence during the early 1880s.  Duveneck presented the theologian with eyes downcast, perusing a book. This contemplative pose contrasts with the artist’s vigorous brushwork. The lively zigzag and horizontal strokes of James’s head enhance the image’s spontaneity and show Duveneck’s delight in rich oil paint, applied with a flourish.

Reference

Michael Quick.  American Painter Abroad: Frank Duveneck’s European Years, Cincinnati: Cincinnati Art Museum, 1887.  ISBN-13: 978-0931537073