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Martin Johnson Heade (1819-1904)
Martin Johnson Heade was born August 11,
1819, in rural Lumberville (Bucks County, PA)
and began his career as a portrait painter but
changed to landscapes and also did many
depictions of hummingbirds.. From 1865 to 1875,
he did a limited number of elaborate table top
still lifes, and very late in his career, did lush
botanical still lifes, especially in Florida.
While he was achieving success as a portrait
painter in the 1840s and 50s, he traveled
continuously in Europe and America. In the late
1850s, he moved to New York City and focused
on landscape and shore scenes, inspired by
the salt marshes around the Narragansett Bay
region of Rhode Island.
In 1863, he made the first of three trips to South
America, first to find subject matter for illustrations
on his book on hummingbirds. The book was
rejected by publishers, so in the 1870s, he began
painting hummingbirds and orchids together in
lush tropical settings. This subject matter was
very startling to viewers because it was highly
sensual as well as unprecedented. In 1884,
twenty years before he died, Heade settled in
St. Augustine, Florida, painting seascapes, birds
and still lifes, especially magnolias and
cherokee roses.
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