Attributed to THADDEUS WELCH (American, 1844-1919). Panoramic Mountain Landscape. 14 x 36 inches (35.6 x 91.4 cm). THE...

Description

Attributed to THADDEUS WELCH (American, 1844-1919)
Panoramic Mountain Landscape
14 x 36 inches (35.6 x 91.4 cm)

THE JEAN AND GRAHAM DEVOE WILLIFORD CHARITABLE TRUST

A painter of landscapes, portraits, and genre, Thaddeus Welch is best known for his views of Marin County, California. Born in La Porte, Indiana, Welch crossed the plains with his family in a prairie schooner at age thirteen and settled on a farm near Portland, OR. He studied art with Virgil Williams in San Francisco and was an apprentice in the studio of J. W. Ogilvy in exchange for art lessons. While there, he made the acquaintance of a wealthy patroness who financed a four-year scholarship for further study in Europe. In 1874 he sailed for Munich where he entered the Royal Academy under Dietz, Piloty, and Leibl. In Munich he became close friends with Frank Duveneck (who painted his portrait), William Merritt Chase, and John Twachtman. Leaving Germany, he spent nearly four years in Paris where he continued studying while living on a houseboat on the Seine. Following his return to the United States he led an itinerant existence, first painting in the Hudson River area, then working for lithographer Louis Prang in Boston, and followed portrait and cyclorama commissions to Philadelphia, Chicago and eventually Australia. When he returned to the United States he married a fellow painter and together they moved to California. Poverty stricken but deeply in love, they camped out in the hills of Marin County until a suitable cottage could be found in nearby San Geronimo Valley. There, the Welches began painting the poetic scenes of rural Marin that were to bring success and freedom from financial worry.


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