Erwin S. Barrie was an American businessman in the arts. He was most closely associated with New York City's
Grand Central Art Galleries
The Grand Central Art Galleries were the exhibition and administrative space of the nonprofit Painters and Sculptors Gallery Association, an artists' cooperative established in 1922 by Walter Leighton Clark together with John Singer Sargent, Edm ...
, which he managed from its founding in 1922 until he retired in 1975.
["Erwin S. Barrie Dies at 97; Led Grand Central Galleries," '']The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', July 27, 1983
Early life
Barrie, whose middle name was Seaver, was born in
Canton
Canton may refer to:
Administrative divisions
* Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries
* Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French
Arts and entertainment
* Canton (band), an It ...
, Ohio. He attended
Cornell University
Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...
and then studied landscape painting at the
Art Institute of Chicago
The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the United States. The museum is based in the Art Institute of Chicago Building in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park. Its collection, stewa ...
.
[ After his studies he became manager of the art collection at ]Carson Pirie Scott
Carson Pirie Scott & Co. (also known as Carson's) is an American department store that was founded in 1854, which grew to over 50 locations, primarily in the Midwestern United States. It was sold to the holding company of Bon-Ton in 2006, but sti ...
; it was at this time that he befriended Hovsep Pushman
Hovsep Pushman (; May 9, 1877 – February 13, 1966) was an American artist of Armenian background. He was known for his contemplative still lifes and sensitive portraits of women, often in exotic dress. He was most closely associated during his ...
and other artists.
Career
In 1922 Barrie was hired by businessman and art patron Walter Leighton Clark
Walter Leighton Clark (1859–1935) was an American businessman, inventor, artist, and philanthropist based in Stockbridge, Massachusetts and New York City.
Biography
Among other achievements, in 1923 Walter Leighton Clark founded with John Si ...
to manage the Grand Central Art Galleries
The Grand Central Art Galleries were the exhibition and administrative space of the nonprofit Painters and Sculptors Gallery Association, an artists' cooperative established in 1922 by Walter Leighton Clark together with John Singer Sargent, Edm ...
, which he was in the process of establishing. Clark had secured space in Grand Central Terminal
Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal station, terminal located at 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York Ci ...
, and his goal was to create "the largest sales gallery of art in the world."["New Home for Art to Cost $100,000," ''The New York Times'', March 11, 1923] The galleries extended over most of the terminal's sixth floor, , and offered eight main exhibition rooms, a foyer gallery, and a reception area.["New Art Gallery Opens to Throng," ''The New York Times'', March 22, 1923] The architect was William Adams Delano
William Adams Delano (January 21, 1874 – January 12, 1960) was an American architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection wi ...
, best known for designing Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.
Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...
's Sterling Quadrangle.
The Grand Central Art Galleries
The Grand Central Art Galleries were the exhibition and administrative space of the nonprofit Painters and Sculptors Gallery Association, an artists' cooperative established in 1922 by Walter Leighton Clark together with John Singer Sargent, Edm ...
were managed by Barrie for more than 50 years; he guided them through the Depression and World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
as well as enabling many of their triumphs. In the 1940s Barrie helped establish the Galleries' "Grand Central Moderns" division, and managed it until Colette Roberts took over the reins in 1951. After the gallery "wandered about for several years" it settled at 130 East 56th Street in 1950. Artists represented by Grand Central Moderns included Byron Browne, Lamar Dodd
Lamar Dodd (September 22, 1909 – September 21, 1996) was an American painter whose work reflected a love of the American South.
Early life and education
Born in Fairburn, Georgia, to Rev. Francis Jefferson Dodd and Etta Cleveland (Ed Dodd, cr ...
, Jennett Lam, and Louise Nevelson
Louise Nevelson (September 23, 1899 – April 17, 1988) was an American sculptor known for her monumental, monochromatic, wooden wall pieces and outdoor sculptures. Born in the Poltava Governorate of the Russian Empire (present-day Kyiv Oblast, ...
.
Barrie's treatment of artists was particularly respectful. For Pushman he "maintained a separate velvet-walled salon.... The only illumination allowed on his paintings were specially designed reflector lights attached to the rear of his carefully selected antique frames."[ ] When Henry Tanner was unable to provide a canvas for the Galleries' 1930 members' show, Barrie chose one of the artist's paintings from the stockroom and entered it in his name. The work, ''Etaples Fisher Folk'', won Tanner the Walter L. Clark prize, worth $500.
In November 1950 Barrie had a show of his own paintings at the Galleries. The exhibition, titled "Famous Golf Holes I Have Played," was attended by former amateur golf champion Willie Turnesa
William P. Turnesa (January 20, 1914 – June 16, 2001) was an American amateur golfer, best known for winning two U.S. Amateur titles and the British Amateur.
Early life
He was one of seven famous golfing brothers; Phil (1896-1987), Frank (189 ...
among others.["Art: Golfscapes," ''Time'' magazine, November 27, 1950] Speaking of his paintings, Barrie said:
The little 11th hole at arrytown, N.Y.'sSleepy Hollow, a one-shotter of 142 yds., is, on the other hand, attractive and gay. It is comparatively easy. The trees are soft and inviting, the reflections in the water are lyric and I have tried to give just that impression in my colorful and atmospheric interpretation of it.
In 1958 the Grand Central Art Galleries
The Grand Central Art Galleries were the exhibition and administrative space of the nonprofit Painters and Sculptors Gallery Association, an artists' cooperative established in 1922 by Walter Leighton Clark together with John Singer Sargent, Edm ...
were forced out of the Grand Central Terminal
Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal station, terminal located at 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York Ci ...
, which had been their home since 1922, by the construction of the Pan Am Building
The MetLife Building (also 200 Park Avenue and formerly the Pan Am Building) is a skyscraper at Park Avenue and 45th Street, north of Grand Central Terminal, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. Designed in ...
. Barrie supervised the Galleries' relocation to the second floor of the Biltmore Hotel
Bowman-Biltmore Hotels was a hotel chain created by the hotel magnate John McEntee Bowman.
The name evokes the Vanderbilt family's Biltmore Estate, whose buildings and the gardens within are privately owned historical landmarks and tourist attra ...
, where they had six exhibition rooms and an office.["Galleries to End 36 Years in Depot," ''The New York Times'', October 31, 1958] Barrie directed the Galleries at that location until 1975, when he retired.
Death
Barrie died in Delray Beach
Delray Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population of Delray Beach as of April 1, 2020, was 66,846 according to the 2020 United States Census. Located in the Miami metropolitan area, Delray Beach is 52 miles (83 ...
, Florida, in 1983 after a brief illness. He also had a home in Greenwich
Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross.
Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...
, Connecticut. He was survived by his second wife, Rose Marie, whom he married in 1974 after the death of his first wife, Grace.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrie, Erwin
1886 births
1983 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
People from Delray Beach, Florida
Cornell University alumni
School of the Art Institute of Chicago alumni
People from Canton, Ohio
Businesspeople from Florida
Businesspeople from Ohio
American art dealers