Theodore Earl Butler

THEODORE EARL BUTLER ( Columbus, Ohio, 1861- 1936).
"Easter Egg Hunt at the White House (Washington)", 1911.
Oil on canvas pasted to board.
Signed and dated in the lower right corner.
Size: 60 x 50 cm; 79 x 69 cm (frame).

From his first marriage and following the birth of his children, Butler focused particularly on domestic themes, depicting scenes in interiors or his garden. Butler's brushstroke exhibits qualities aligning him with the work of Paul Gauguin and the Nabis artists. In his later works, Butler further experimented with Fauvist principles, painting landscapes in Giverny and along the coast of Normandy, sometimes applying color directly from the tube to decorative elements.

Theodore Earl Butler was an American Impressionist painter who moved to Paris to study art. He befriended Claude Monet in Giverny and married Monet's stepdaughter, Suzanne Hoschedé. After Suzanne's death, he married her sister, Marthe Hoschedé. Butler was a founding member of the Society of Independent Artists. His chosen subjects were domestic scenes of family and friends, as well as the French landscape. While his Impressionist approach sometimes reflects the influence of his father-in-law, his work also suggests Post-Impressionist tendencies. Butler studied at Marietta College in Ohio, graduating in 1882. He continued his studies at the Art Students League with James Carroll Beckwith, Kenyon Cox, J. Alden Weir, and William Merritt Chase from 1884 to 1886.

In Paris, Butler enrolled in La Grande-Chaumière, the Académie Colarossi, and the Académie Julian, studying under Emile Carolus-Duran. Carolus-Duran established an art studio in 1873 on Boulevard Montparnasse, known as "81." Notable for offering free classes to some painters, this studio introduced Butler to the work of Claude Monet, who had moved to Giverny in April 1883. Butler received an honorable mention in 1888 at the Paris Salon for his painting titled "La Veuve" (The Widow). Other American painters who spent time in Giverny included John Leslie Breck, Frederick Carl Frieseke, Edmund Greacen, Philip Leslie Hale, Willard Metcalf, Lilla Cabot Perry, Theodore Robinson, and Guy Rose.

From January 31 to February 1892, an exhibition of foreign artists, including Butler, Meteyard, Fox, Dice, Stasburg, and Dawson Watson, was organized. Butler became a key figure and a link between the American colony and Claude Monet. He developed his own Impressionist style with clear palettes and loose brushstrokes, reminiscent of the works of Édouard Vuillard and Pierre Bonnard. From his garden, he painted landscapes depicting the church of Giverny, 'Les Demoiselles' (small haystacks), and barns. He held several solo exhibitions in New York, including one at the Paul Durand-Ruel gallery in 1900.

In 1914, the Butler family moved to New York when Theodore was commissioned to paint murals for the house of William Paine. He contributed two paintings to the 1913 Armory Show in New York, titled 'Marine' and 'Fourteenth of July, Paris.' He co-founded the Society of Independent Artists with his friend John Sloan and served on its board from 1918 to 1921. The outbreak of World War I prevented Butler from returning to Giverny until 1921. In the meantime, he became involved with the American Red Cross and raised funds with Marthe Hoschedé.