John Whorf, Rediscovered is the definitive resource for collectors and admirers of John Whorf (1903–1959). Researched for over a decade, the book includes examples of his paintings, many now in some of our nation’s most prestigious museums, and reveals the truth about his influences, particularly that of his mentor and philosophical guide, Charles Webster Hawthorne (1872–1930). It also offers an assessment of Whorf’s thirty-five year career as seen through the eyes of the influential Boston and New York critics who wrote about him from his first solo exhibit at the age of twenty-one.
Over the more than fifty years since his death, John Whorf has remained a perennial favorite among art collectors and the art-loving public alike. His paintings—from European cityscapes to iconic Boston landmarks and picturesque Provincetown lanes—are vignettes of a world now largely disappeared, painted with a depth and vividness of color, a confidence of brushwork, and an understanding of the essential nature and truth of his subjects. Yet despite his continued popularity, until now, there has not been a book that examines Whorf’s evolution as an artist and his place in American art, particularly American watercolor.
John Whorf, Rediscovered is now available through AFAPublishing. This 128-page hardcover book ($79.95) includes over 70 paintings, more than half of them never seen before, along with many private family photographs. Order your book today at www.afapublishing.com, or by calling 617.926.0004.
Illustrated above in order:
(book cover) John Whorf (1903–1959), (detail) Provincetown Lane, 1938. Watercolor on paper, 14.5 x 21 inches. Signed lower right. Private collection.
John Whorf, 1920.
John Whorf (1903–1959), (detail) Washerwoman, Jamaica, 1929. Pencil and watercolor on paper, 19 x 16 inches. Signed lower left. Private collection.
John Whorf (1903–1959), (detail) Swan Boats, c. 1950s. Watercolor on paper, 14.5 x 21.5 inches. Signed lower right. Courtesy of Vose Galleries. Private collection.
John Whorf (1903–1959), (detail) Day in July, n.d. Watercolor, pencil and chalk, 14.875 in. x 22.125 in. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts, museum purchase, 1938.32.
John Whorf (1903–1959), (detail) Waiting in the Wings. Watercolor on paper, 27 x 22 inches. Signed lower right. Private collection.
