More History of Mudhead Tradition in Provincetown
These amazing photos of Charles Hawthorne's and Henry Hensche's classes on the beach in Provincetown were shared with me by the family of John Whorf. He was a well known Provincetown painter, and I copied a short bio at the bottom of this post. The mudhead below was painted by him when he was around 15 in Charles Hawthorne's class. I am so excited to see a picture of Whorf's early mudhead. Pictures like these really help me understand the history of the mudhead tradition in Provincetown.
Hawthorne class in Provincetown, late teens or early 20s.
Mudhead by John Whorf. Painted when he was in his mid teens in Hawthorne's class. 16x20"
Hensche class on the beach in Provincetown painting mudheads. Probably around 1948.
Hensche class in Provincetown, early 30s. You can see how the students flipped their boards around to paint another on the back.
(b.Winthrop, Massachusetts 1903; d. Provincetown, Massachusetts 1959) American painter. Born in Massachusetts, John Whorf’s family had a strong connection to Cape Cod as fishing captains, traders and shipbuilders and Whorf felt strongly drawn to the sea. His father was an artist and encouraged his son’s desire to study art. Whorf was fourteen when he went to Provincetown to study with artists known within the Provincetown, Cape Cod and Islands community such as Max Bohm, George Elmer Brown, Richard Miller and Charles W. Hawthorne. He then studied in Boston at the St. Botolph Studio under Sherman Kidd and at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts School. In 1919 he went to France and continued his education at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, the Grande Chaumiere and the Academie Colarossi. While living in France he took the opportunity to travel to Spain, Portugal and Morocco. He was a competent oil painter, but after his travels in Europe he embraced the medium of watercolor and became a renowned watercolorist. In 1924, the Grace Horne Gallery in Boston gave Whorf his first solo exhibition. His work has been recognized with medals from the California Water Color Society and the Art Institute of Chicago and an honorary M.A. from Harvard University.
(from askart.com)
Hawthorne class in Provincetown, late teens or early 20s.
Mudhead by John Whorf. Painted when he was in his mid teens in Hawthorne's class. 16x20"
Hensche class on the beach in Provincetown painting mudheads. Probably around 1948.
Hensche class in Provincetown, early 30s. You can see how the students flipped their boards around to paint another on the back.
(b.Winthrop, Massachusetts 1903; d. Provincetown, Massachusetts 1959) American painter. Born in Massachusetts, John Whorf’s family had a strong connection to Cape Cod as fishing captains, traders and shipbuilders and Whorf felt strongly drawn to the sea. His father was an artist and encouraged his son’s desire to study art. Whorf was fourteen when he went to Provincetown to study with artists known within the Provincetown, Cape Cod and Islands community such as Max Bohm, George Elmer Brown, Richard Miller and Charles W. Hawthorne. He then studied in Boston at the St. Botolph Studio under Sherman Kidd and at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts School. In 1919 he went to France and continued his education at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, the Grande Chaumiere and the Academie Colarossi. While living in France he took the opportunity to travel to Spain, Portugal and Morocco. He was a competent oil painter, but after his travels in Europe he embraced the medium of watercolor and became a renowned watercolorist. In 1924, the Grace Horne Gallery in Boston gave Whorf his first solo exhibition. His work has been recognized with medals from the California Water Color Society and the Art Institute of Chicago and an honorary M.A. from Harvard University.
(from askart.com)
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