Families
Illustrated Glossary
- The Museum will be closed December 24 & 25 for the holiday.
Architecture
Cornice
Any prominent, continuous, horizontally projecting feature surmounting a wall or other construction, or dividing it horizontally for compositional purpose.
The fancy cornice above the door in the art colony bedroom reminds us that the room was originally used as the parlor.
Cornice in Art Colony Bedroom, 2006, Photograph by Joseph Standart
Medallion
A decorative element, usually rounded, often bearing objects represented in relief.
Imagine how pretty Miss Florence would have looked standing beneath the plaster medallion in the ceiling greeting her guests.
William Verplank Birney (1858-1909) The Front Hall, 1908, Oil on canvas
Purchased with Funds from the Charles E. Culpeper Foundation
Artists' Tools
Paint Box
A box containing a collection of artists supplies such as brushes, paints, palettes, solvents, pencils etc…useful when painting away from the studio
With his paint box in one hand and easel in the other, the artist headed away from the Griswold House for a day of painting.
Clarke Voorhees outfitted for a day of plein-air painting
Types of Painting
Impressionism
A style of painting developed in the last third of the 19th century in France, which is characterized by short brush strokes of bright colors in immediate juxtaposition to represent the effect of light on objects
The artist who wanted to learn more abut Impressionism was smart to follow Childe Hassam to Old Lyme to watch him paint.
Childe Hassam (1859-1935), Late Afternoon (Sunset), 1903, Oil on canvas, Gift of Mr. & Mrs. Robert Krieble
Landscape Painting
A genre of art dealing with the depiction of natural scenery
After his third summer in Lyme, the artist changed from painting dogs to landscapes, happy that his trees did not chase butterflies.
Frank Vincent DuMond (1865-1951), Grassy Hill, 1933, Oil on canvas, Gift of Mrs. Elisabeth DuMond Perry
Still-Life Painting
A representation of chiefly inanimate objects such as a painting of a bowl of fruit.
Since the artist was tired of painting models, he decided to do a still-life painting of a table and a vase of flowers.
Matilda Browne (1869-1947), Flowers, Oil on canvas board, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Larry J. Lawrence in Loving Memory of Isabel Scoville Peterson Patricelli
Tonalism
A style of painting that was favored by the early artists of the Lyme Art Colony. They used a limited number of colors and painted scenes that were filled with sentiment, emotion, and mood.
Dedicated to the style of tonalism, the artist painted at twilight to capture the golden light before sunset.
Matilda Browne (1869-1947), Cornfield Point, c. 1910, Oil on canvas, Gift of Ms. Helen Krieble in Honor of the Centennial
Related Terms
Artist Colony
A group of individuals having similar interests, occupations, usually living in a particular locality and forming a community
Bringing together all of his artistic friends was Henry Ward Ranger’s first step in forming the new artist colony at Old Lyme.
The Hot Air Club with artists on the side porch, 1905
Fox Hunt
Popular in England, this hunt features hunters on horseback following running hounds (dogs) in pursuit of a fox
The four prints over the fireplace in the dining room depict an English foxhunt.
F. C. Tanner (Painter), Charles Hunt (Engraver), Ackermann and Co., London (Publisher), The Fox Chase, Plate I: “A Southerly Wind and a Cloudy Sky,” 1834, Engraving on paper
Packet Boat
Also called packet ships, these small vessels carried mail, passengers, and goods regularly on a fixed route at sea, on rivers, or along coasts.
Florence Griswold’s father was the captain of a packet boat and he would sail from New York to London transporting people and packages back and forth.
Samuel Walters (1811-1882), The Northumberland, 1847, Oil on canvas, Gift in Honor of the Centennial; Donated by Mr. William E.S. Griswold, Jr.
Wiggle Game
A drawing game in which one person draws squiggly lines on a sheet of paper and the other person uses those lines to make a picture of something
The artists would pass hours at a time playing the wiggle game in the parlor during the evenings.