Joseph Henry Sharp
| Joseph Henry Sharp | |
|---|---|
Joseph Henry Sharp, c. 1910
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| Born |
September 27, 1859 Bridgeport, Ohio |
| Died | August 29, 1953 Pasadena, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Education |
McMicken School of Design Cincinnati Art Academy Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Antwerp) Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Munich) Académie Julian |
| Known for | Painting |
| Movement | Taos Society of Artists |
Joseph Henry Sharp (September 27, 1859 – August 29, 1953) was an American painter and a founding member of the Taos Society of Artists, of which he is considered the "Spiritual Father". Sharp was one of the earliest European-American artists to visit Taos, New Mexico, which he saw in 1893 with artist John Hauser. He painted American Indian portraits and cultural life, as well as Western landscapes. President Theodore Roosevelt commissioned him to paint the portraits of 200 Native American warriors who survived the Battle of the Little Bighorn. While working on this project, Sharp lived on land of the Crow Agency, Montana, where he built Absarokee Hut in 1905. Boosted by his sale of 80 paintings to Phoebe Hearst, Sharp quit teaching and began to paint full-time.
In 1909 he bought a former chapel in Taos to use as a studio, near the house of the artist E. Irving Couse. In 1912 he and his wife moved to the area full-time. He built a house with studio near the chapel. Both artists' homes and studios are part of the Eanger Irving Couse House and Studio—Joseph Henry Sharp Studios, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Sharp was born in Bridgeport, Ohio on September 27, 1859 to Irish immigrant parents. His father was a merchant by trade. From childhood, Sharp was fascinated with anything to do with American Indians. As a boy, Sharp nearly drowned in a swimming accident. He was pulled from the water and carried to his home by friends who thought he was dead. His mother resuscitated him, but the incident permanently damaged his hearing, and he gradually became totally deaf. As a result, he had to learn to read lips and carried a writing pad with him.
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