Martin Johnson Heade

Martin Johnson Heade (August 11, 1819 – September 4, 1904) was an American painter known for his salt marsh landscapes, seascapes, and depictions of tropical birds (such as hummingbirds), as well as lotus blossoms and other still lifes. His painting style and subject matter, while derived from the romanticism of the time, are regarded by art historians as a significant departure from those of his peers.

Heade was born in Lumberville, Pennsylvania, the son of a storekeeper. He studied as soon as Edward Hicks, and possibly in imitation of Thomas Hicks. His antiquated works were produced during the 1840s and were chiefly portraits. He travelled to Europe several times as a young person man, became an itinerant artist on American shores, and exhibited in Philadelphia in 1841 and New York in 1843. Friendships in the spread of artists of the Hudson River School led to an raptness in landscape art. In 1863, he planned to reveal a volume of Brazilian hummingbirds and tropical flowers, but the project was eventually abandoned. He travelled to the tropics several become old thereafter, and continued to paint plants and flowers. Heade married in 1883 and moved to St. Augustine, Florida. His chief works from this get older were Floridian landscapes and flowers, particularly magnolias laid upon velvet cloth. He died in 1904. His best known works are depictions of light and shadow on the salt marshes of New England.

Heade was not a widely known player during his lifetime, but his acquit yourself attracted the revelation of scholars, art historians, and collectors during the 1940s. He speedily became endorsed as a major American artist. Although often considered a Hudson River School artist, some critics and scholars take exception to this categorization. Heade's works are now in major museums and collections. His paintings are occasionally discovered in unlikely places such as garage sales and flea markets.