Creating a World on Paper: Harry Fenn's Career in Art

Preface

 ix  . Preface My interest in Harry Fenn dates back almost thirty years, to when I realized that many of the most attractive nineteenth-century prints of American scenery and cities offered in print shops were his compositions, often taken from disbound copies of the two-volume Picturesque America. The luminosity of that book’s steel engravings and the variety and charm of its wood engravings intrigued me. I decided to examine how these images were made and their impact on their period, the 1870s. Because Fenn was the first and most prolific of the artists who contributed to Picturesque America, I wanted to find out all I could about him. At first I found very little. About 1982 I learned from Maureen O’Brien, then curator of collections at the Montclair Art Museum, that some of Fenn’s descendants still lived in Montclair , New Jersey, where he died in 1911. In the fall of 1983, I was thrilled to meet Fenn’s granddaughter Dorothy van Antwerp Walters and Jean F. van Antwerp, the widow of Fenn’s grandson Donald van Antwerp. Both welcomed me into their homes and showed me several of Fenn’s works that had been passed down in the family as well as a brief account of his life written by his son. Over the next decade, as the article I planned to write gradually grew into my 1994 book, Creating “Picturesque America”: Monument to the Natural and Cultural Landscape, I kept in touch with these gracious women, who have since died. I also made contact with William V. Abt, Dorothy Walters’s son and Fenn’s greatgrandson , who has generously allowed me to reproduce in this book several of his grandfather’s artworks, some of Fenn’s childhood sketches, and photos from a family scrapbook. I am immensely grateful to Bill, who is also an artist, for offering information, assistance, and encouragement when it must have seemed I would never complete this project. In 2008, after writing about two other illustrators who were colleagues of Fenn, John Douglas Woodward and Mary Hallock Foote, I asked myself if I was tired of x preface  Fenn or if I might want to write about his entire career. In looking through my voluminous files, I found new energy and enthusiasm: clearly, this artist was imaginative, creative, adaptable, indefatigable, and highly influential. His works shaped how many people viewed the world, popularized illustrated publications, and expanded the field for others. His story needed telling, and I wanted to tell it. Since 2008 I have had the pleasure of being in touch with several other Fenn descendants who have also shared their artworks and knowledge with me. I am most grateful for their help and interest in their ancestor’s life and work. Many others have provided invaluable assistance on this decades-long journey: Marjorie Balge-Crozier encouraged me to study Picturesque America thirty years ago and read and commented on an early version of the manuscript for this book; Richard Crozier, an accomplished painter and champion of his artistic forbears, offered advice and cheered me on; and Georgia Barnhill, curator of graphic arts emerita, American Antiquarian Society, read the manuscripts and provided helpful suggestions on both projects. I am grateful to Helena Wright, curator of graphic arts at the National Museum of American History, for research leads and suggestions , especially on the role of photography in this period; and Stephen P. Rice, professor of American studies, Ramapo College of New Jersey, for his tough and insightful critiques. Anne Chestnut has been my guide through the mysteries of digital technology for many years. Daniel Bluestone helped with genealogical research and sections related to architecture. Raymond and Jane Gill contributed in many ways, especially by finding Fenn’s grave in Evergreens Cemetery. Jonathan Flaccus shared my interest in Fenn and located many of his works, both drawings and prints. An anonymous reader solicited by the University of Massachusetts Press offered valuable suggestions that guided my revisions, and the press’s staff has been most helpful. Thanks also to Robin Karson, Mike McCue, Bill Brandt, W. Dale and Rose Marie Horst, Paul Worman, and Alexander W. Katlan for information, suggestions , and encouragement. Fenn’s known works and few extant letters are scattered in various museums, libraries, and private collections. I am grateful to the individuals and institutions that have granted permission for these works to be reproduced and to the librarians and curators who have provided assistance over the years, especially...