Jon Carsman

Jon Carsman (December 1944 – 1987) was an American painter, draughtsman, and printmaker.

Early life and education

Jon Carman was born in December 1944 in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania to Jack and Loretta Carsman. By age eight, Carsman's parents approached Niccolo Cortiglia (1893–1982), a local artist and art instructor to provide lessons for their prodigious son. Cortiglia described the young Carsman as having, "golden fingers."

Carsman graduated from Kingston High School. In 1962 he relocated briefly to Detroit, where he attended Wayne State University. He transferred to Wilkes University in 1963, and ultimately earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art Education there in 1966. He relocated to New York City and earned a Master of Arts degree in Art Education in 1967 from New York University.

Following his graduation from NYU, Carsman taught in various Harlem schools for the New York City Department of Education.

Career

Following Carsman's graduation from NYU, he was introduced to David Herbert who was a native of Carsman's home region and the American Art director of the Graham Gallery, one of New York's most prestigious galleries. Carsman's work was featured in solo exhibitions and included in group exhibitions at Graham from 1969 to 1974. Later Carsman transferred his representation to the Fischbach Gallery, and finally to the Andrew Crispo Gallery. He also had periodic representation by and solo exhibitions at ACA Galleries, and Hammer Galleries.

Work

At Kingston High School, Carsman received art instruction from local artist, Graydon Mayer who was the chair of the high school's art department. A naturalist painter himself, Mayer allowed Carsman and his other students accompany him on weekends in Wyoming and Susquehanna counties in rural, mountainous Pennsylvania where Carsman received exposure to the topography that later formed the core of the subject matter of his mature work. According to a catalogue for a major posthumous retrospective exhibition of Carsman's work at Wilkes University, "The Carsman family itself had a summer cottage at Harvey's Lake, and the rambling streams and waterfalls along Bowman's Creek, Buttermilk Falls, Hunlock's Creek, and Ricketts Glen were re-formed by his imagination. arsmanalso found inspiration in the small towns of Edwardsville and Courtdale, uniquely characterized by uphill perspectives frequently aterfound in his aturework."

Of his early mature work produced in New York City, the Wilkes University retrospective exhibition catalogue recounts, "From his studio in lower Manhattan arsmancompleted a series of views of New York City rooftops in the early 1970s, followed by a critically successful exhibition of Harvey's Lake works, then a series of small-town roadways and frame houses in Bucks County and along the Delaware River, later returning to a favorite theme of woodland views. While arsmanpainted from photographs, his aim was not simply to recreate the scene: “”I want to give you a feel of what it is like to be there when I was.”” Indeed, one commentator found arsman’swork an “interesting synthesis of photographic, art historical and personal resources." These "personal resources" included what has been described as a haunting quality in arsman'swork, reminiscent, perhaps, of late-night walks with friends returning home from the Kingston Theater, tranquil summer days with his family at Harvey's Lake, and, in later years, the lush floral surrounds during excursions to the Hamptons, Long Island."

Carsman's final body of work consisted of lush, floral infused paintings, watercolors, and prints. The Wilkes University catalogue described those works and their origins, "A visit around 1980 to Impressionist, Claude Monet's adopted home at Giverny

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