Robert Crannell Minor (1835-1904) [H NRA 1886-1904]
American Romantic / Barbizon-style landscape painter & etcher ;
Robert C. Minor ; R.C. Minor, Robert Minor, Sr. ; Robert Minor ; R. C. Minor ; R. Crannell Minor ;
[Born April 30, 1839 in New York, NY – August 3, 1904 in “Beechwood”, Waterford, CT]

SAL record control number: 67559 ;

Record level: Person ;

Record type: Artist ;

Biography:

Birth: April 30, 1839 in New York, NY ;
Death: August 3, 1904 in “Beechwood”, Waterford, CT ;
Sex: Male ;
Ethnicity: White ;
Zodiac: Taurus ;

Known for: Romantic / Barbizon landscape paintings ; nocturne landscape paintings ;
Medium: Oil ;
Technique: Painting ;
Subjects: idealized landscape ; moonlight ; water ; sunsets ;

Areas: New York, NY ; Paris, France ; Barbizon, France (1871) ; Germany ; Italy ; Antwerp, Belgium ; Adirondack mountains, NY ; “Beechwood”, Waterford, CT ;
Region: North East ; Europe ;
Lived: University Building, 60 Washington Square South, New York, NY (1886-1895) ; 58 West 57th Street, New York, NY (1896-1902) ; “Beechwood”, Waterford, CT ;
Father: Israel Minor (1807-1895) from Waterford, CT, a pharmaceutical mogul ;
Mother: Charlotte L. (Crannell) Minor (1810-1899), from New London, CT ;
Relatives: Israel Minor (1840-1893), brother ; Albert Judson Minor (1849-1880), brother ;
Spouse: Isabel Augusta (Smith) Minor (1838-1901), wife ;
Children: Robert Crannell Minor, Jr. (1889-1894), son ;

Training: Cooper Union, New York, NY (possibly) or private studio of Alfred Cornelius Howland (1838-1909), New York, NY (Howland taught at both places, ca.1870) ; Barbizon, France under Emile Diaz de la Pena (1835-1860), whom he considered his master (1871) ; Antwerp Academy, Antwerp, Belgium under Gérard Jozef Adrian van Luppen (1834-1891) & Gustave Clarence Rodolphe Boulanger (1824-1888) (1873) ;
Instructors: Alfred Cornelius Howland (1838-1909) ; Gustave Clarence Rodolphe Boulanger (1824-1888) ; Gérard Jozef Adrian van Luppen (1834-1891) ; Emile Diaz de la Pena (1835-1860) ;
Work: Entered the business world initially in New York, NY until 1865 when he became a painter ;

Taught:
Students:

Member: National Academy of Design, New York, NY, associate (1888) ; National Academy of Design, New York, NY, academician (1897) ; Salmagundi Club, New York, NY, honorary artist member (1885/6-1904) ; Societe Artistique et Litteraire of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium, vice-president ; Society of American Artists, New York, NY ; Society of Landscape Painters, New York, NY ; Artists Fund Society, New York, NY ; American Water Color Society, New York, NY ; National Arts Club, New York, NY, charter member ;
Exhibited with: Paris Salons, Paris, France (1872, 1900) ; Grosvenor Gallery (1877- ), London, England (1873-1874) ; Royal Academy, London, England (1873-1874) ; National Academy of Design, New York, NY ; Pan American Exposition, Buffalo, NY (1901) ; Paris Exposition, Paris, France (1889, 1900) ; Charleston Exhibition, Charleston, SC, silver medal winner ;
Awards: Pan American Exposition, Buffalo, NY, silver medal (1901) ; National Academy of Design, New York, NY, Lotos Club fund purchase (1898) ; Paris Exposition, Paris, France (1889), 3rd class medal ; Paris Exposition, Paris, France (1900), honorable mention ;

Milestones: Minor gave up his New York studio in 1900 (1874-1900), at which time he was an invalid and unable to walk (beginning ca.1898) ; Took up painting after the Civil War in 1865 ; Collected by art connoisseur William T. Evans (7 works), whose sale at auction brought Minor notoriety (1900) ; Auction received record amount for Minor’s award winning painting Close of day, $3,050 (in today’s money about $55,000 USD) (1900) ; Minor who was live at the auction was overcome with emotion and left to avoid crying in public (1900) ; Collected by C. F. Smith ; Liked “the mystery of darkness” ; Not considered a skilled painter but, one that wanted to show more than what was actually existing ;

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