id: 138524 accession number: 1962.413 share license status: Copyrighted url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1962.413 updated: 2023-03-17 12:56:22.409000 Meditation in Space, c. 1942. William Sommer (American, 1867–1949). Watercolor; The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Theodor W. Braasch 1962.413 title: Meditation in Space title in original language: series: series in original language: creation date: c. 1942 creation date earliest: 1937 creation date latest: 1947 current location: creditline: Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Theodor W. Braasch copyright: --- culture: America, Ohio, Cleveland technique: watercolor department: Drawings collection: DR - American - Cleveland School type: Drawing find spot: catalogue raisonne: --- CREATORS * William Sommer (American, 1867–1949) - artist Born in Detroit to a family of German immigrants, Sommer first studied drawing at the age of 11 with Julius Gari Melchers. Pursuing a career in commercial lithography, Sommer apprenticed at Calvert Lithography in Detroit, 1881–88, and subsequently worked at various lithography shops in Boston, New York, and England. In 1890 he went abroad for a year of study at the Kunstakademie in Munich. In 1891 he returned to New York and spent the next 16 years working as a commercial lithographer. In 1907 he moved to Cleveland to work for the Otis Lithograph Company, where he became friendly with William Zorach. Around 1910, and under the influence of Abel Warshawsky, Sommer began to experiment with impressionist colors; subsequently he experimented with a fauvist palette. He exhibited with the Cleveland “secessionists” at the Rorimer-Brooks Studios in early 1911 and cofounded the Kokoon Klub that summer. Around 1914 he moved to Brandywine, a rural valley about 20 miles south of Cleveland, where he converted an abandoned schoolhouse into a studio that became an important meeting place for modern artists, poets, and musicians. In May 1918 Sommer designed stage sets and programs for a production of Everyman by the Cleveland Play House. He exhibited in the annual May Shows at the Cleveland Museum of Art (1922–50). In the 1930s and 1940s he exhibited on a regular basis in Cleveland, Chicago, and New York. During the Depression he was employed by various New Deal art programs to paint murals for Cleveland Public Hall (1933), Cleveland Public Library (1934), the post office in Geneva, Ohio (1938), and the Akron Board of Education (1941). After the death of his wife in 1945, he was struck by chronic bouts of depression and alcoholism. Sommer died in Brandywine.
"Transformations in Cleveland Art" (CMA, 1996), p. 238 --- measurements: state of the work: edition of the work: support materials: inscriptions: --- CURRENT EXHIBITIONS title: The May Show: 24th Annual Exhibition of Works by Cleveland Artists and Craftsmen opening date: 1942-04-29T04:00:00 The May Show: 24th Annual Exhibition of Works by Cleveland Artists and Craftsmen. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 29-June 7, 1942). title: Year in Review - 1962 opening date: 1962-10-24T04:00:00 Year in Review - 1962. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 24-November 25, 1962). title: Year in Review (1963) opening date: 1963-11-27T05:00:00 Year in Review (1963). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 27, 1963-January 5, 1964). title: William Sommer: Master of Watercolor Painting opening date: 1979-03-03T05:00:00 William Sommer: Master of Watercolor Painting. Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH (organizer) (March 3-April 15, 1979); The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO (July 7-August 12, 1979); University of Iowa Museum of Art, Iowa City, IA (August 31-October 14, 1979). --- LEGACY EXHIBITIONS --- PROVENANCE --- fun fact: digital description: wall description: --- RELATED WORKS --- CITATIONS William Sommer Entry Card to 1942 May Show. Cleveland Museum of Art May Show Records, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives. page number: url: https://archive.org/details/CMAMS06406 --- IMAGES