Walter Quirt

'''Walter Quirt''' (born November 24, 1902 - March 19, 1968) was an American artist. He was employed by WPA Federal Arts Project for seven years.<ref name="Cooper 1902">{{cite web | last=Cooper | first=Elizabeth | title=Walter Quirt (1902-1968) | website=American Social Surrealist and Abstractionist | date=1902-11-24 | url=https://www.sullivangoss.com/walter_Quirt/ | accessdate=2016-05-17}}</ref> He painted many small panels that showed his influences from Diego Rivera, and Jose Orozco.<ref name="Cooper 1902"/> Quirt was awarded the Cranbrook prize at the Michigan Artists Annual exhibition in 1946 that was held in Detroit, Michigan.<ref name="Fine Art, Decorative Art, and Design - The Art World Online 1960">{{cite web | title=Walter Quirt Biography – Walter Quirt on artnet | website=Fine Art, Decorative Art, and Design - The Art World Online | date=1960-03-02 | url=http://www.artnet.com/artists/walter-quirt/biography | accessdate=2016-05-17}}</ref> He was also awarded the Wisconsin Centennial Prize at the Wisconsin Artists Annual in 1948.<ref name="Fine Art, Decorative Art, and Design - The Art World Online 1960"/>

==Early life and education== Born in Iron River, Michigan, Quirt attended the Layton School of Art in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1921.<ref name="Cooper 1902"/> He also studied at the MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire.<ref name="Cooper 1902"/> Quirt began to teach art classes to some novice students up through 1926.<ref name="Cooper 1902"/> During his time at the schools he painted some of his early watercolor paintings which were exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1926, as well as in the International Watercolor Exhibitions of 1929.<ref name="Cooper 1902"/>

==Art career== Quirt's works are in the collections of the de Young Museum, San Francisco; the Henry Art Gallery, University of Washington, Seattle; the Minneapolis Institute of Art; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, Washington, D.C.; the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, CT; the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; the Weisman Art Museum, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, among others.<ref name="Worssam 2015">{{cite web | last=Worssam | first=Nancy | title=Walter Quirt: One of the most vibrant artists you've never heard of | website=The Seattle Times | date=2015-05-01 | url=http://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/visual-arts/walter-quirt-one-of-the-most-vibrant-artists-youve-never-heard-of/ | accessdate=2016-05-17}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Walter Quirt |url=http://www.frederickholmesandcompany.com/walter-quirt-1902-1968/ |website=Frederick Holmes and Company - Gallery of Modern & Contemporary Art |accessdate=13 June 2019}}</ref>

"The great artist is one who faithfully follows his impulses, who vigorously and courageously peels off layer after layer of restrictions, prohibitions, and inhibitions. This takes courage, for it automatically means suffering." - Walter Quirt<ref name="Cooper 1902"/>

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * [http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/walter-quirt-papers-8309 Walter Quirt papers]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quirt, Walter}} Category:American male painters Category:1902 births Category:1968 deaths Category:People from Iron River, Michigan Category:Painters from Michigan Category:Federal Art Project artists Category:20th-century American painters Category:People from Iron County, Wisconsin Category:20th-century American male artists