Nashville in Brown County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
The Brown County Art Colony
Photographed By J. J. Prats, September 18, 2022
1. The Brown County Art Colony Marker, side one
Attracted by the area’s natural beauty and its residents’ rustic lifestyles, a group of professional artists began working in Brown County by 1908. The Brown County Art Colony gained renown as its members exhibited regularly, first in the Midwest, then nationally. Many of the artists worked to capture the character of the landscape in an American Impressionist style.
The colony prospered during the American Regional Art Movement (1920s-1940s) and fueled economic development of the region. In response to increased demand for their work, the artists and local partners established the Brown County Art Gallery nearby in 1926. In 1954, several of the colony’s original artists founded an additional gallery, the Brown County Art Guild.
Erected 2021 by Indiana Historical Bureau, Peaceful Valley Heritage Preservation Inc., and Brown County Community Foundation. (Marker Number 07.2021.1.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Arts, Letters, Music. A significant historical year for this entry is 1908.
Location. 39° 12.441′ N, 86° 14.881′ W. Marker is in Nashville, Indiana, in Brown County. Marker is at the intersection of Jefferson Street North and West Main Street, on the right when traveling west on Jefferson Street North
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. The Old Pump House (within shouting distance of this marker); Frank P. Taggart Building (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); 09.11.2001 (about 300 feet away); The Nashville House (about 400 feet away); Frank Hohenberger (about 400 feet away); Brown County (Indiana) Courthouse on National Register (about 400 feet away); Brown County Veterans Memorial (about 400 feet away); Welcome to the Abe Martin Lodge (approx. 2.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Nashville.
Also see . . . Wikipedia entry.
Adolph Shulz is considered to be the founder of the colony, encouraging many Indiana and regional artists to come to Brown County to paint. Though artists such as William McKendree Snyder had been coming to Brown County as early as 1870, the colony is considered to have been firmly established in 1907 when the noted painter T. C. Steele moved there. The dean of Indiana painters, Steele built a home and studio on a large plot of land west of Nashville near Belmont and made it his permanent home. Its proximity to Indiana University in Bloomington allowed Steele to accept a position as artist in residence there in 1922.(Submitted on September 25, 2022.)
An art association wasincorporated in 1926 with Carl Graf as the first president. In 1954, the association split into two organizations: The Brown County Art Gallery and Museum and The Brown County Art Guild. Both organizations continue to maintain galleries in Nashville in which art created by the early artists is displayed along with the art of contemporary members which is for sale.Photographed By J. J. Prats, September 18, 20222. The Brown County Art Colony Marker, side two
Some of the noted Brown County artists include: Adam Emory Albright • Patty Bartels • Gustave Baumann • Olive Beem • Dale Bessire • C. Curry Bohm • Anthony Buchta • V. J. Cariani • Dale Cassiday • C. Carey Cloud • Evelynne Mess Daily • Alexis J. Fournier • Edwin Fulwider • Marie Goth • Carl Graf • Genevieve Goth Graf • Louis Oscar Griffith • John Hafen • Glen Cooper Henshaw • Georges LaChance • Leota Loop • Karl Martz (potter) • Adrian J. Miller • Chelsea Noggle • Robert Marshall Root • Paul Turner Sargent • Ada Walter Shulz • Adolph Shulz • T. C. Steele • Will Vawter • Frederick W. Rigley • William Zimmerman
Photographed By J. J. Prats, September 18, 2022
3. The Brown County Art Colony Marker
Courtesy The Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington. Photograph by Frank M. Hohenberger, October 16, 1927
4. Title: “Artists’ group at Nashville gallery; Dahlgreen head turned”
Left to right, front row: Homer Gordon Davisson,
Louis Oscar Griffith,
Varaldo Guiseppe Cariani,
Claude Curry Bohm,
Charles W. Dahlgreen, George Andrew Mock; second row: Edward K. Williams, Ada Shulz, Beatrice Musette Stoddard, Marie Goth, Lucie Hatrath, Robert Marshall Root, Adolph Shulz; back row: Will Vawter, Paul Turner Sargent, Carl Christopher Graf
Credits. This page was last revised on September 25, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 25, 2022, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 163 times since then and 29 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on September 25, 2022, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.
