William John Hennessy was born in Ireland. He came to America in 1849 with his mother and brother a year following his father's fleeing their homeland after taking part in the unsuccessful Young Ireland Party uprising. The Hennessys settled in New York, and when young William came of age, he decided upon a career as an artist. At the age of 15, he enrolled at the National Academy of Design, where he learned to draw from the antique, and the following year he was granted admission to the Academy’s life-drawing class.
Hennessy first exhibited at the National Academy in 1857, starting a continuous run of appearances in their annuals that lasted until 1870, when he expatriated himself to Europe. During his time in America, Hennessy was principally known as a genre painter and prolific illustrator for such publications as Harper’s Weekly and a number of books, including illustrated works of William Cullen Bryant, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and Alfred Lord Tennyson.
Hennessy left the United States and settled in London, living there and in its environs variously for a few years, and summered in Normandy, where he ultimately established a permanent residence in 1875. In 1893, Hennessy returned to England, but continued to spend a good deal of his time in France. Though the bulk of his career was spent abroad, Hennessy maintained a lifelong identification as an American, and exhibited with other American expatriates in both the Centennial Exposition, Philadelphia, in 1876, and also occasionally sent works to the National Academy’s annual exhibitions.
Few works by Hennessy are known today. From what one can glean from the surviving works, early on in his career, Hennessy appears to have concentrated on genre scenes and Barbizon-influenced landscapes, while in the late 1870s he appears to have adopted an more aestheticized style derived from Whistler and the English Pre-Raphaelites. His later works, from the mid-1890s on, show the strong influence of Impressionism.
Works by Hennessy are in public collections, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the Brooklyn Museum, New York; the Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut; the National Academy of Design, New York; the Mead Art Museum, Amherst College, Massachusetts; the Century Association, New York; and the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York.
(Biography provided by Hirschl & Adler)
Portrait of the Artist's Daughters, American Impressionism Painting, Signed
By William John Hennessy
Located in PARIS, FR
William John Hennessy Thomastown 1839 - Rudgwick 1917 Portrait of the Artist's Daughters Circa 1880 Oil on canvas mounted on cardboard Signed bottom left 33 x 23.5 cm canvas 44 x ...
Canvas, Oil, Cardboard
"On the Sands, Long Island Sound" William John Hennessy, New York, Irish Artist
By William John Hennessy
Located in New York, NY
William John Hennessy On the Sands, Long Island Sound Signed and dated lower left; signed, dated, and titled on the reverse Oil on canvas 15 1/2 x 22 1/2 inches William John Hennes...
Canvas, Oil
The Race
By William John Hennessy
Located in New York, NY
William John Hennessy was born in Ireland. He came to America in 1849 with his mother and brother a year after his father had fled their homeland after taking part in the unsuccessful Young Ireland Party uprising. The Hennessys settled in New York, and when young William came of age, he decided upon a career as an artist. At the age of fifteen, he enrolled at the National Academy of Design, where he learned to draw from the antique, and the following year he was granted admission to the Academy’s life-drawing class. Hennessy first exhibited at the National Academy in 1857, starting a continuous run of appearances in their annuals that lasted until 1870, when he expatriated himself to Europe. During his time in America, Hennessy was principally known as a genre painter and prolific illustrator for such publications as Harper’s Weekly and a number of books, including illustrated works of William Cullen Bryant...
Canvas, Oil
Take Me Home, 12x8" oil, framed
By Lu Haskew
Located in Loveland, CO
"Take me Home" by Lu Haskew Oil 19x16" framed, 12x8" image size Signed lower left A young child very apparently ready to go home from their intense yet cute look. The child is weari...
Canvas, Oil
$6,500
H 22 in W 30 in
"Summer Pier Fishing" American Scene Social Realism WPA Mid-20th Century Modern
By Syd Browne
Located in New York, NY
"Summer Pier Fishing" American Scene Social Realism WPA Mid-20th Century Modern Syd J. Browne (1907-1991) "Summer Pier Fishing" 22 x 30 inches Oil on canvas. c. 1930s Signed lower r...
Canvas, Oil
$350
H 16 in W 24.1 in D 0.5 in
19th C Victorian Romantic Summer Landscape Old River Bridge Oil Canvas Signed
Located in Stockholm, SE
This charming oil painting on canvas, created in the second half of the 19th century and bearing a partially preserved signature 'W????ce', represents a fine example of a European ro...
Canvas, Wood, Oil
$26,000
H 20 in W 22 in D 2 in
Landscape American Hungarian European Modernism 1938 Realism Long Island WPA era
By Stephen Csoka
Located in New York, NY
Landscape American Hungarian European Modernism 1938 Realism Long Island WPA era. The canvas measures 18” x 20". The artist signed the stretcher as well as the canvas. The scene depicts a spots in New York where Queens borders with Nassau county, Rosedale, which abuts the Five Towns. The border runs through Hook Creek, another painting we are currently offering. Stephen (Istvan) Csoka was born in Gárdony, Hungary on January 2, 1897 and died in New York in 1989. He is best remembered as a painter and etcher of portraits, nudes, landscapes, genre, and horses. Csoka studied at the Budapest Royal Academy of Art and his memberships include Associate of the National Academy of Design in New York City; the Society of American Etchers in Brooklyn, NY; the Society of Brooklyn Artists; and the Hungarian Etchers Association. Csoka's exhibitions and awards include a medal at the Barcelona International Exhibition in 1929; a prize at the City of Budapest Exhibit in 1930; prizes at the Society of American Etchers in 1942 and 1945; prizes at the Library of Congress in 1944 and 1946; a prize at the Society of Brooklyn Artists in 1944; a prize at the Philadelphia Watercolor Club in 1945; the Corcoran Gallery of Art in 1945; the Carnegie Institute in 1943, 1944, and 1945; the Art Institute of Chicago in 1944; the Los Angeles Museum of Art in 1945; the National Academy of Design from 1940 through 1945; one-artist shows at the Contemporary Artists in 1940, 1943, and 1945; and the Minneapolis State Fair in 1943. *Stephen continued to recieve awards and exhibit his work throughout his life. In 1997, Hofstra Museum sponsored a Retrospective/Centennial exhibition in honor of his birth. Collections representing Csoka's work are the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY; the Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, NY; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA; the British Museum, London, England; the Bezalel National Museum, Jerusalem, Israel; the Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio; Whistler House Museum of Art, Lowell, MA; the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH; Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH; the Sheldon Swope Art Museum, Terre Haute, IN; the Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL; the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum, Minneapolis, MN; the Museum of New Mexico, Santa Fe, NM; the Budapest Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, Hungary; Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest, Hungary, the Museum of the City of Budapest, Budapest, Hungary; the Library of Congress, Washington, DC; Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA; the Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA; Georgia Museum of Art, Athens, GA; Hofstra Museum, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY; Holocaust Museum, Glen Cove, NY; National Academy of Art, New York, NY; New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans, LA; New York Historical Society, New York, NY;New York Public Library, New York, NY; National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; Peabody Museum, Cambridge, MA; Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA; Reading Public Museum, Reading, PA; Livingston Arts Center, Mount Morris, NY; Ball State Teachers College, Muncie, IN; City College, New York, NY; Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, NY; Hungarian Consulate, New York, NY; Hungarian Heritage, New Brunswick, NJ; Hunter College, New York, NY; IBM Collections; Princeton Print Club...
Canvas, Oil
$3,055
H 25 in W 29 in D 2.5 in
Oil Painting of Loch in the Scottish Highlands by 20th Century British Artist
By Wendy Reeves
Located in Preston, GB
Oil Painting of Loch in the Scottish Highlands by 20th Century British Artist Wendy Reeves. Art measures 20 x 16 inches Frame measures 29 x 25 inches (f...
Canvas, Oil
$7,500
H 19.5 in W 15.5 in D 1.5 in
“Eastern White Pines, c. 1910”, New England Landscape, Signed Oil Painting
By Charles Warren Eaton
Located in Yardley, PA
“Eastern White Pines, c. 1910” by Charles Warren Eaton (American, 1857-1937). A wonderful example of Eaton’s renowned compositions of Eastern white pine trees in his mature style. A...
Canvas, Oil, Board
Mid Century Native American Portrait
Located in Soquel, CA
Mid century Native American portrait by B. Shepard (American, 20th Century). Signed "B. Shepard" lower middle. Unframed. Currently on a mat, ...
Oil, Cardboard
$1,215
H 18.25 in W 22.25 in D 2 in
Winter Forest Landscape - Antique Oil Painting by 19th Century American Artist
Located in Preston, GB
Winter Forest Landscape - Antique Oil Painting by 19th Century American Artist, Clara Davis Inness (1874-1932) Art measures 20 x 16 inches Frame measures 22.25 x 18.25 inches Oil o...
Canvas, Cotton Canvas, Oil
$40,000
H 58 in W 52 in
"Glad and Rhododendron" Irving Ramsey Wiles, American Impressionist Portrait
By Irving Ramsey Wiles
Located in New York, NY
Irving Ramsey Wiles Glad and Rhododendron, circa 1927 Inscribed indistinctly with title (on the turnover) Oil on canvas 46 x 40 inches Provenance The artist Estate of the artist Hir...
Canvas, Oil
$43,900
H 35 in W 47 in
"Antique Grasshopper Weathervane" oil painting, poetic realist, still life
By Sarah Lamb
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
A major oil painting from American Realist painter Sarah Lamb. A unique, antique weathervane in the form of a brass grasshopper is the subject of...
Canvas, Oil
"Looking for Breakfast", Oil Painting
By Christopher Clark
Located in Denver, CO
Christopher Clark's (US based) "Looking for Breakfast" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a bird perched in a flooded grassy field. Bio/artist statement: Christopher has been an artist since early childhood, when he would watch Bob Ross on PBS and mimic the famed oil painter’s art with crayons. He considers himself a self-educated artist, with his studies ranging from personal training with contemporary masters, to classical academic art technique, with much inspiration from 19th Century art and the Impressionist Movement. Christopher lived in Italy for a time, immersing himself in Italian culture and art, which continues to influence his painting. His fan base has grown considerably since his return to the US, gaining the attention of Lucasfilm and Marvel Fine Art, which both signed him as an officially licensed artist in 2016. Other clients include George Lucas, Major League Baseball, Louisville Slugger...
Canvas, Oil
$1,215
H 13 in W 11 in D 2 in
Figures on Parisian Street with Moulin Rouge Paris Sign in Impressionist Style
By Tony Mercier
Located in Preston, GB
Figures on Parisian Street with Moulin Rouge Paris Sign in Impressionist Style by British Artist, Tony Mercier (Born 1945) Art measures 8 x 10 inches Frame measures 11 x 13 inches ...
Canvas, Cotton Canvas, Oil