Louise Norton (June 19, 1888 – September 6, 1941) was a

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

-born American artist who was a founding member of the arts colony in

Tucson Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, Arizona, in the early part of the twentieth century. She was a pioneering female painter who helped shape the culture of Arizona and the Southwest.

Life and Art

Norton was born to Ruth Moore and John W. Norton. Her family moved to a ranch five miles outside of

Prescott, Arizona Prescott ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. As of 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, the city's population was 45,827. In 1864, Prescott was designated as the capital of the Arizona Territory, r ...

, when she was four years old. She attended Prescott High School and graduated with honors from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

. She then attended the

Kansas City Art Institute The Kansas City Art Institute (KCAI) is a private art school in Kansas City, Missouri. The college was founded in 1885 and is an accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and Higher Learning Commission. The institute ...

. She traveled abroad throughout Europe and

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian language, Tahitian , ; ) is the largest island of the Windward Islands (Society Islands), Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France. It is located in the central part of t ...

to paint. She was lauded for her portraits and still life paintings. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

she was in government service in Washington D.C. Norton was one of the original four members of the Pallet and Brush, the original art colony of the south-western city of Tucson. She also served on the first board of directors of the Tucson Fine Arts Association which would ultimately become the

Tucson Museum of Art Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson metropolitan ...

. Her paintings were exhibited at the

New Mexico Museum of Fine Art The New Mexico Museum of Art is an art museum in Santa Fe governed by the state of New Mexico, United States. It is one of four state-run museums in Santa Fe that are part of the Museum of New Mexico. It is located one block off the historic Sa ...

at Santa Fe, in Kansas City, New York, Washington and throughout Arizona.

Works Progress Administration (WPA)

She was responsible for setting up and organizing women’s work projects under the WPA in Cochise, Santa Cruz, Pima and Pinal counties. After five and a half years, her title for the WPA was Area Supervisor for Community Service.

Death

After a multi-month illness Norton died on September 6, 1941, at her home in Tucson, Arizona, located at 346 East Speedway Boulevard in the West University Historic District.

Legacy

Her work is in the permanent collection of the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

in Washington D.C. She was a member of

Kappa Alpha Theta Kappa Alpha Theta (), commonly referred to simply as Theta, is an international Fraternities and sororities, sorority founded on January 27, 1870, at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. It was the first Greek-letter fraternity established ...

and the Altrusa Club. In 1930, she was awarded first prize in painting from the Northern Arizona Museum.

Notes

* ''Tucson Daily Citizen'', Miss Norton Reviews Brandiff Pictures, November 15, 1930 {{DEFAULTSORT:Norton, Louise 1888 births 1941 deaths 20th-century American painters 20th-century American women artists Artists from Tucson, Arizona University of Missouri alumni Kansas City Art Institute alumni