Emile A. Gruppe (1896-1978) American, Oil on Canvas. Depicts a stunning winter wonderland. Signed bottom right. Salmagundi Club exhibition label on back with artist name, original price ($50.00), and title: "Winter, Vermont." 

Overall Size: 11 1/2 x 13 3/4 in. 

Sight Size: 9 1/2 x 11 3/4 in. 

#4653 

Emile Albert Gruppé was born in 1896 in Rochester, New York. His childhood was spent in the Netherlands as his father, Charles P. Gruppé, painted with the Hague School of art and acted as a dealer for various Dutch painters in the United States. The family returned permanently to the States around 1913 when rumblings of World War I were brewing. All of Emile’s siblings became involved in the arts: Paulo Mesdag (1891-1979) was a cellist, Karl Heinrich (1893-1982) was a sculptor, and Virginia Helena Gruppé (1907-1980) was a watercolorist. He studied at the National Academy in New York City and then traveled to Paris in 1916 to study at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière. In 1917 he enlisted in the United States Navy, serving with them for a year. When the war ended he settled in Gloucester, Massachusetts, and became a member of the Cape Ann school of artists, eventually opening his own studio. Although Gruppé is best known for his variety of impressionistic landscapes, he also painted figures and portraits. His modern style was heavily influenced by the French Impressionist Monet. From 1940 to 1970 he ran the Gloucester School of Painting at Rocky Neck on Smith Cove. From 1960 onward he wintered in Naples, Florida, where he painted tropical scenes. In the 1970s he wrote two books about brushwork, color, and technique. He was a member of the Salmagundi Club, the North Shore Art Association, the Rockport Art Association, the Gloucester Society of Artists, the Allied Artists of America, the Longboat Key Art Association, and the Sarasota Art Association. Gruppé died in 1978 at his home in Gloucester. His son, Robert C. Gruppé, also became a painter and maintains the Gruppé Gallery at Rocky Neck, while his daughter Emilie Alexander runs the Emile A. Gruppe Gallery in Jericho, Vermont. Both galleries feature their father’s paintings, among others from the Cape Ann group, and his pieces are found in many private collections along the East Coast.