Irene Hilde Aronson (sometimes Anderson or Aronsohn, 1918–1992) was a German-born American painter and printmaker.

Early life and education

Aronson was a native of

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

, and came to England as a refugee in the 1930s. She studied at a number of institutions during her life, including the Eastbourne School of Art, the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

, the Slade School of Fine Arts, and the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

. In 1960 she received a bachelor's degree from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, following with a Master of Arts degree two years later. During her career she also had lessons at the

Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may st ...

and the

Parsons School of Design Parsons School of Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is a private art and design college located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhatt ...

. Her instructors included Stanley William Hayter,

Vladimir Polunin Vladimir Polunin (1880 – 11 March 1957) was a scene painter. Born in the Russian Empire, in 1908 Polunin moved to London to work as a designer for the ''Ballets russes''. He was Diaghilev's chief scene-painter and worked with Picasso. Amo ...

, and Randolph Schwabe.

Career

During her career Aronson exhibited works in solo shows both in the United States and abroad; she won numerous awards and honors for her art. Active as well as a costume designer and book illustrator, she was a member of the California Society of Etchers. In 1956 her colored, soft ground etching, ''L'Opera'' was exhibited in the Society of American Graphic Artists' (now known as the

Society of American Graphic Artists The Society of American Graphic Artists (SAGA) is a not for profit national fine arts organization serving professional artists in the field of printmaking. SAGA provides its members with exhibition, reviews and networking opportunities in the N ...

) 40th Annual Exhibition at the Architectural League, New York City for $50. She lived in

Rego Park Rego Park is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City. Rego Park is bordered to the north by Elmhurst and Corona, to the east and south by Forest Hills, and to the west by Middle Village. Rego Park's boundaries include Queens ...

and Forest Hills at various points.

Public collections

Aronson's prints may be found in numerous museum collections, both in the United States and abroad. The

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds ...

owns two, ''The Circus'' and ''Spring'', while the

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art, and its attached Sculpture Garden, is a national art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of ch ...

owns three, the etching ''Still-Life'', the lithograph ''Zurich'', and the 1958 woodcut ''Oriental Fantasy''. Ten works are in the collection of the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

, including seven variants of the lithograph ''The Circus Performance'', and copies of the etching ''Moonlight'', the etching ''Danse Macabre'', and a book of ''Chinese Fables'' by Kathy Ch'iu which she illustrated. The

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of t ...

owns a 1951 print entitled ''Moon Night'' in etching and aquatint. Four works are in the holdings of the

Victoria & Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aronson, Irene 1918 births 1992 deaths 20th-century American painters 20th-century American printmakers 20th-century American women painters American women printmakers American women illustrators 20th-century American illustrators Artists from Dresden Emigrants from Nazi Germany Immigrants to the United States Painters from New York City Columbia University alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford Alumni of the Ruskin School of Art Alumni of the Slade School of Fine Art Alumni of the University of London Art Students League of New York alumni Parsons School of Design alumni People from Rego Park, Queens People from Forest Hills, Queens