The Lost Felice (circa 1939)

Marsden Hartley prints bring the bold color and strong shapes of one of America's first modernist painters into your home. Hartley painted wherever life took him, from the mountains of Maine to wartime Berlin and the hills of New Mexico, and he never stopped experimenting. Our collection gathers more than 80 of his works as fine art prints, including his Berlin abstractions, Alpine peaks, still lifes and rugged Maine coast scenes.

About Marsden Hartley

Marsden Hartley was born Edmund Hartley in Lewiston, Maine, on January 4, 1877, the youngest of nine children. His mother died when he was eight, and the family later moved to Ohio, where he studied at the Cleveland School of Art on a scholarship. He went on to New York to study under William Merritt Chase, and in his early twenties he took the first name Marsden.

In 1909 the photographer Alfred Stieglitz gave Hartley his first solo exhibition at the gallery 291, and Hartley went on showing with Stieglitz for almost three decades. He spent his summers in western Maine, and he looked closely at Paul Cézanne and at the American painter Albert Pinkham Ryder, whose studio he often visited.

Hartley went to Paris, where Gertrude Stein's circle introduced him to the avant-garde, and in 1913 he moved to Berlin. There he became friends with Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc and formed a close bond with a young Prussian officer, Karl von Freyburg, who was killed early in the First World War. Hartley's grief shaped some of his most important paintings.

After returning to America he kept moving: Provincetown, Bermuda, New Mexico, Dogtown Common near Gloucester, Mexico, the Bavarian Alps and Nova Scotia, where he lived with the Mason fishing family. In 1937 he went home to Maine, wanting to become "the painter of Maine." He was also a published poet and essayist. He died in Ellsworth, Maine, on September 2, 1943.

Style and Subjects

Hartley's work is easy to spot once you know it: heavy black outlines, flat areas of strong color, and shapes that feel carved rather than drawn. His Berlin paintings stack flags, numbers, badges and checkerboards into tight, symbolic compositions that mix the geometry of Cubism with the rough brushwork and dramatic color of German Expressionism.

His later work turns that same force toward nature. Mountains become solid blocks of color, rocks and waves look heavy and permanent, and fishermen are painted as broad, monumental figures. Even his still lifes of fruit, flowers and fish have a weighty, almost sculptural presence.

Famous Works

• Autumn Color (ca. 1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. An early landscape from the years he spent his summers painting in western Maine.
• Painting No. 48 (1913), Brooklyn Museum, New York. One of the bold abstractions Hartley painted in his first year in Berlin.
• Portrait of a German Officer (1914), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A coded tribute to Karl von Freyburg, made of flags, insignia, his initials and an Iron Cross.
• The Virgin of Guadalupe (1918–1920), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A painting from the years after Hartley's return from Europe, when he worked in the American Southwest.
• Cemetery, New Mexico (1924), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. One of Hartley's New Mexico landscapes, now in the Met's collection.
• The Lost Felice (ca. 1939–1940), Los Angeles County Museum of Art. A mourning image of the Mason family's drowned sons and their sister.
• Lobster Fishermen (1940–1941), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A late painting from his return to Maine, celebrating the state's lobstermen.

Decorating with Hartley Prints

Hartley's Berlin abstractions, such as Painting No. 48 and the Military Symbols series, have the punch of a modern graphic poster. Their reds, blues, yellows and blacks work well in a living room, home office or hallway with clean lines and solid colors. The Alpine peaks and New Mexico hills, with their earthy reds and deep blues, suit a calmer bedroom or a reading corner.

For a coastal or cabin feel, look to his Maine paintings: Lobster Fishermen, Storm Wave, Driftwood on the Bagaduce and the Mt. Katahdin views. His still lifes of apples, pears, grapes and flowers are a natural fit for a kitchen or dining room, where their warm colors and simple shapes sit well with wood and stoneware.

FAQ

What art movement was Marsden Hartley part of?

Hartley was a leading figure in American Modernism. In Paris and Berlin he studied Cubism, and his Berlin paintings combine abstraction with German Expressionism and his own personal mysticism.

What is Marsden Hartley's most famous painting?

Portrait of a German Officer (1914) is his best-known work. Painted in Berlin, it honors his friend Karl von Freyburg through flags, military insignia, his initials and an Iron Cross, and it hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Where can I see original Marsden Hartley paintings?

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York holds several key works, including Portrait of a German Officer, Cemetery, New Mexico and Lobster Fishermen. The Brooklyn Museum and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art also have important paintings.

How can I recognize a Marsden Hartley painting?

Look for thick dark outlines, flat blocks of strong color and solid, heavy forms.

Why is Marsden Hartley called a Maine painter?

Hartley grew up in Maine and returned there in 1937, wanting to become "the painter of Maine." His late work includes views of Mount Katahdin and paintings of lobstermen.

Related Artists

• Wassily Kandinsky — friend of Hartley's in Berlin
• Franz Marc — German Expressionist and friend of Hartley's in Berlin
• Albert Pinkham Ryder — American painter Hartley admired and often visited
• Paul Cézanne — whose solid, structured forms Hartley followed
• William Merritt Chase — Hartley's teacher in New York