Arshile Gorky(1904-1948)
- Art Department
Armenian painter and draftsman. Born in Khorkom Van, Hayotz Dzore, a
village in now Turkish Armenia. Emigrated to the USA in 1920, lived
first in Boston and studied at Rhode Island School of Design,
Providence Technical High School and the New School of Design, Boston.
Changed his name from Vosdanig Manoog Adoian to Arshile Gorky. Moved in
1925 to New York and studied and taught at Grand Central Art School
1925-31. Painted pictures strongly influenced by Picasso. Friendships
1929-34 with Stuart Davis and from c. 1933 with De Kooning. First one
man exhibition at the Mellon Galleries, 1934 Philadelphia. Worked
1935-39 on the WPA Federal Art Project as a mural painter. Developed an
increasingly personal style from 1941-2, with hybrid biomorphic imagery
and a more fluid handling of paint. Spent much time in the countryside
from 1942, especially at Sherman, Connecticut. Died by suicide at
Sherman after a succession of misfortunes, including a fire in his
studio and being severely injured in a car accident.
