Mark Tobey
Mark Tobey | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | December 11, 1890 Centreville, Wisconsin, USA |
| Died | April 24, 1976 (aged 85) Basel, Switzerland |
| NSA member | British Isles 1936 - 1938 |
Mark Tobey (December 11, 1890 - April 24, 1976) was an American Bahá’í who notably established a successful career as a painter achieving recognition in the United States and Europe. He was an active member of the Bahá’í community notably serving on the Local Spiritual Assembly of Seattle and National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles and participating in the Geyserville Bahá’í Summer School as a participant and speaker.
Biography[edit]
Tobey was born in Centreville, Wisconsin, in 1890 but his family moved to Trempealeau, Wisconsin, in 1894 and he was raised there. He attended a Congregational Church in his youth and attended school however he had to leave high school and begin working to provide for his family due to his father becoming ill. As of 1909 the family had moved to Chicago and he worked in several jobs up until 1911.[1]
In 1911 Tobey moved to Greenwich Village in New York aiming to pursue a career as a fashion illustrator and he began working for McCall's Magazine and producing charcoal portraits notably working for famous opera singer Mary Garden. His portraits were exhibited in a modern art gallery run by Marie Sterner. He was invited to a dinner held by Sterner which was also attended by Bahá’í artist Juliet Thompson who introduced him to the Bahá’í Faith and he declared in 1918.[1]
In 1919 Tobey briefly lived in Mexico City before returning to New York where he continued his art career achieving some renown for caricatures of famous personalities some of which were published in the New York Times. In 1922 he married however the marriage was unhappy and ended after a short time and he moved to Seattle that year where he began teaching art at the Cornish School.[2] He also served on the Local Spiritual Assembly of Seattle and attended the Geyserville Summer School often giving talks at it while living in Seattle.[3]
In 1925 Tobey moved to Paris, France, for several months then undertook a trip through Europe and Western Asia visiting Spain, Greece, Turkey, and Lebanon. During this tour he was also able to go on pilgrimage to the Holy Land and he met Shoghi Effendi. In 1930 he moved to England and was appointed as head of the painting department of the art college Dartington Hall in Devonshire where he was able to associate with notable figures such as Aldous Huxley and Rabindranath Tagore and during this time he taught fellow artist Bernard Leach about the Faith.[2] He was an active member of the British Bahá’í community and served on the National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles.[3]
In 1932 Tobey undertook a second trip through Europe and made a second pilgrimage to the Holy Land,[2] and in 1934 he visited Far East Asia spending time in Shanghai and Japan where he studied calligraphy before returning to England where he resumed his position at Dartington Hall and began incorporating calligraphy into his artwork.[3]
In 1938 Tobey returned to Seattle in the United States and began to achieve financial success and widespread recognition for his art establishing a professional relationship with Marian Willard who owned the Willard Gallery in New York and from 1944 onwards the Willard Gallery hosted exhibitions of his work. In 1948 his artwork was included in the United States section of the Venice Biennale and in 1952 a short film directed by Robert Gardner titled Mark Tobey featuring Tobey reciting poetry was shown at film festivals in Venice and Edinburgh.[2]
Throughout the 1950's Toby's art began to receive recognition in Europe with an exhibition of his work being held at the Galerie Jeanne Bucher in Paris and in 1958 he was awarded the first prize for painting at that years Venice Biennale making him the first American to receive the award since 1895.[2] He also received recognition for his work in the United States being awarded the United States National Prize at the Guggenheim International Award in 1956, being awarded the American Institute of Fine Arts Medal in 1957, and being elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1960 although he turned down the position.[4]
In 1960 Tobey returned to Europe moving to Basel, Switzerland, from Seattle and in 1961 he had his work exhibited at the Paris Louvre making him the first non-French artist to have a one man exhibition at the Louvre. In 1974 he was recognized for his work by the United States when the U.S. National Collection of Fine Arts presented an exhibition of his work.[2]
Tobey passed away in his sleep on April 24, 1976, in Basel and the Universal House of Justice conveyed the following message after his passing:
DEEPLY GRIEVED ANNOUNCE PASSING DISTINGUISHED DEDICATED SERVANT BAHAULLAH MARK TOBEY STOP EVER REMEMBE RED HIS CONSTANT SUPPORT BAHAI COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION ACTIVITIES DEVOTED SERVICES ENGLAND JAPAN SWITZERLAND UNITED STATES UNSTINTING TESTIMONY INSPIRATION FAITH AS HIS FAME INCREASED STOP ARDENT PRAYERS OFFERED SACRED THRESHOLD PROGRESS HIS SOUL ABHA KINGDOM.[4]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1981). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 17 (1976-1979), Pg(s) 401. View as PDF.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1981). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 17 (1976-1979), Pg(s) 402. View as PDF.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1981). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 17 (1976-1979), Pg(s) 403. View as PDF.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1981). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 17 (1976-1979), Pg(s) 404. View as PDF.
