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"Dockside Gloucester"

Creator: C. Hjalmar Amundsen
Offered by: Arthur T. Kalaher Fine Art

Description
Here for your consideration is a well executed oil on canvas painting by the well known American marine artist C. Hjalmar “Cappy” Amundsen. Signed lower right “Wm Lawrence” one of the the pseudonyms used by Amundsen. Condition of the painting is good to very good. Some crazing in the sky but no restorations. In its original wood antique white pickled oak frame. Overall measurements are 20 by 24 inches. Provenance: a Long Island, New York collector.

C. Hjalmar "Cappy" Amundsen
Born: 1911 - New York City
Died: 2001 - East Moriches, New York
Known for: Impressionist whaling scenes, harbor views, ships and seascapes
Name variants: D Ainsley, Casper Hjalmar Amundsen, Hjalmar Amundsen, Hjalmar "Cappy" Amundsen, Ernest Cramer, JJ Enwright, C Hjalmar, W Hughes, William Lawrence, F H McKay, Frances H McKay, Francis H McKay, H Nansen, William Ward Jr.

Born Caspar Hjalmar Emerson III in New York City in 1911, and in 1946 legally changed his name to Hjalmar Amundsen in honor of his great-uncle, explorer Roald Amundsen, who located the center of the South Pole the year his great-nephew was born.

He was in his early twenties when he first began painting, claiming that he only did so, because it was easier than any other work he could think of. Amundsen loved the sea, and had a lifelong interest in sailing and fishing. While growing up, Hjalmar and his father would drive to the East End of Long Island, and he'd go out in a fishing boat. Later he bought a small boat and went out sailing and fishing as often as he could.

As an adult, the young artist moved back to New York and spent time painting in and around Gloucester and Provincetown, Massachusetts. In his early career, he is believed to have created up to 275 paintings a year over a period of six years under the name of Enwright, and it is now believed that J.J. Enwright and Hjalmar Amundsen is one and the same artist.

Living in Greenwich Village, he was one of the founders of the Washington Square Art Show in New York, where he sold many of his works, and he painted covers for Motor Boating Magazine, which brought in $100 each. In 1946 he moved to Sag Harbor, Long Island, New York, with his second wife Nancy. Amundsen opened a studio and lived in the same building, becoming a well-liked figure in the community. He painted waterfront images, sailing ships, fishing boats, and the New England coastline.Cappy lived a bohemian lifestyle, making a living with his painting, but by the 1980s times had become tough, and it was through the initiative of friends and the community that his house was restored. He died in Brookhaven Memorial Hospital on January 18, 2001.

More Information

Documentation:	Signed
Origin:	United States, New York
Period:	1920-1949
Materials:	Oil paint on canvas
Condition:	Good to very good; no restorations. Visible crazing in the sky area
Creation Date:	Circa 1940
Styles / Movements:	Post Impressionism
Incollect Reference #:	555161