Title is Elk on Jackson Lake. 22" by 36" unframed. 28" by 42" framed. Oil on Canvas. Provenance: March In Montana 03/18/2022 Lot 544, Turner Art Gallery. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Born in Austria, John Fery earned a strong reputation for dramatic paintings of western mountain landscape in the United States. Glacier National Park in northwest Montana was a popular subject for him. He was raised in a prominent, wealthy family that lived on an estate about nineteen miles northeast of Salzburg. His mother was Hungarian, and his father was born in Bohemia. Some sources have written that he studied art in Dusseldorf, Germany with Peter Jansen, and also in Munich, Venice and Karlsruhe. But his "name does not appear in the records of the major art schools in any of these places, nor is there any record of his name at either the Vienna or Budapest academies." (Merrill 26) It is possible, however, that he received private instruction, and because of the sophistication of his painting, sources think it unlikely that he was self taught. An early interest in wilderness scenery led him to painting American landscapes and hunting scenes. In the mid 1880s, he came to America and lived in the German community in Milwaukee, and then in 1886, brought his family to the United States. His wife, Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1940), was born in Switzerland, and they had one child born near Munich and two others born in the United States. From 1886 to 1888, they lived in New York, and by 1890, Fery had made his first trip West. He visited Yellowstone Park in 1891, and indicated in his writings that he had been there even earlier. From 1892 to 1893, he led European nobility on hunting expeditions to the American Northwest, made possible by the completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The group's itinerary included Lake Michigan, Arizona with the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Wyoming. In 1895, he led a second expedition, and these ventures launched his career as a painter of the American West. During the late 1890s, he lived with his family in a cabin near Jackson Lake, Wyoming, but by 1900 was in Duluth, Minnesota, where he and Austrian-born painter Feodor von Luerzer painted mural decorations for the Fitger Brewery tap room. (In 1914, the murals were moved to the Pickwick Restaurant in Duluth, where they remained for many years). By 1903, Fery was in Milwaukee where he stayed until 1911, when he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota until 1918. His greatest patron became Louis Hill, owner of the Great Northern Railway and a resident of St. Paul. Hill commissioned Fery to paint scenes of Glacier Park and other scenic landscapes for placement in their hotels and railroad stations. Over the years the Railroad purchased a total of 362 works, and many of these paintings were large-scale, panoramas. In 1914, after several years of painting in Glacier Park, Fery did a series of about twelve oil paintings of Yellowstone for advertising purposes for the Northern Pacific Railroad. Itinerant, Fery seems never to have settled in one place for very long. From 1919 to 1923, he was living in Salt Lake City, Utah where he painted many landscapes, especially of Zion Canyon. Then he returned to Milwaukee until 1929, when he moved to Orcas Island near Bellingham, Washington. That same year a fire took all his possessions including thousands of sketches and many paintings. After that he moved to Everett, Washington where he died five years later. About 150 of his paintings have been found after his death, and the largest group are of Glacier National Park, but some are from California, Arizona and New Mexico and Wisconsin. One is from Venice, Italy and one from Bavaria. Most of the paintings are in private collections but the Burlington Northern Railway, successor to the Great Northern Railway, has work by Fery in the collection as does the Church of the Latter Day Saints Museum in Salt Lake City. In 1974, an exhibition of his work was held at the Milwaukee Public Library, and in 1975 at the Boise Gallery of Art in Boise, Idaho.
Title is Elk in Glacier National Park. 22" by 36" unframed. 30" by 44" framed. Oil on Canvas. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Born in Austria, John Fery earned a strong reputation for dramatic paintings of western mountain landscape in the United States. Glacier National Park in northwest Montana was a popular subject for him. He was raised in a prominent, wealthy family that lived on an estate about nineteen miles northeast of Salzburg. His mother was Hungarian, and his father was born in Bohemia. Some sources have written that he studied art in Dusseldorf, Germany with Peter Jansen, and also in Munich, Venice and Karlsruhe. But his "name does not appear in the records of the major art schools in any of these places, nor is there any record of his name at either the Vienna or Budapest academies." (Merrill 26) It is possible, however, that he received private instruction, and because of the sophistication of his painting, sources think it unlikely that he was self taught. An early interest in wilderness scenery led him to painting American landscapes and hunting scenes. In the mid 1880s, he came to America and lived in the German community in Milwaukee, and then in 1886, brought his family to the United States. His wife, Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1940), was born in Switzerland, and they had one child born near Munich and two others born in the United States. From 1886 to 1888, they lived in New York, and by 1890, Fery had made his first trip West. He visited Yellowstone Park in 1891, and indicated in his writings that he had been there even earlier. From 1892 to 1893, he led European nobility on hunting expeditions to the American Northwest, made possible by the completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The group's itinerary included Lake Michigan, Arizona with the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Wyoming. In 1895, he led a second expedition, and these ventures launched his career as a painter of the American West. During the late 1890s, he lived with his family in a cabin near Jackson Lake, Wyoming, but by 1900 was in Duluth, Minnesota, where he and Austrian-born painter Feodor von Luerzer painted mural decorations for the Fitger Brewery tap room. (In 1914, the murals were moved to the Pickwick Restaurant in Duluth, where they remained for many years). By 1903, Fery was in Milwaukee where he stayed until 1911, when he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota until 1918. His greatest patron became Louis Hill, owner of the Great Northern Railway and a resident of St. Paul. Hill commissioned Fery to paint scenes of Glacier Park and other scenic landscapes for placement in their hotels and railroad stations. Over the years the Railroad purchased a total of 362 works, and many of these paintings were large-scale, panoramas. In 1914, after several years of painting in Glacier Park, Fery did a series of about twelve oil paintings of Yellowstone for advertising purposes for the Northern Pacific Railroad. Itinerant, Fery seems never to have settled in one place for very long. From 1919 to 1923, he was living in Salt Lake City, Utah where he painted many landscapes, especially of Zion Canyon. Then he returned to Milwaukee until 1929, when he moved to Orcas Island near Bellingham, Washington. That same year a fire took all his possessions including thousands of sketches and many paintings. After that he moved to Everett, Washington where he died five years later. About 150 of his paintings have been found after his death, and the largest group are of Glacier National Park, but some are from California, Arizona and New Mexico and Wisconsin. One is from Venice, Italy and one from Bavaria. Most of the paintings are in private collections but the Burlington Northern Railway, successor to the Great Northern Railway, has work by Fery in the collection as does the Church of the Latter Day Saints Museum in Salt Lake City. In 1974, an exhibition of his work was held at the Milwaukee Public Library, and in 1975 at the Boise Gallery of Art in Boise, Idaho.
John Fery (born Johann Nepomuk Levy) (Austrian/American, 1859-1934). Oil on canvas landscape painting depicting a mountainous view with an elk among trees. Signed along the lower right. Lot essay: John Fery earned a strong reputation for his highly sophisticated, dramatic, and large-scale panoramic paintings of the Western mountain wilderness, most notably Glacier National Park and Yellowstone. Born into a wealthy family near Salzburg, Austria, John Fery immigrated to the United States in the mid-1880s. He was an itinerant traveler who never settled in one place for long. He lived in Duluth, Minnesota, for some time, where he and fellow Austrian-born painter Feodor von Luerzer painted murals for the Fitger Brewery taproom. Fery's career took off when Louis Hill, son of James J. Hill, hired Fery for the Great Northern Railway's "See America First" campaign; between 1910 and 1913 alone, Fery produced 347 major oil paintings of Glacier National Park. He spent the following decades freelancing, painting Yellowstone for the Northern Pacific Railway, and fulfilling a second multi-year Glacier contract for Hill. Later in life, Fery relocated to Orcas Island, Washington, in 1929, where a devastating fire destroyed all of his possessions, including thousands of sketches and many paintings. Approximately 150 of Fery's paintings have been discovered following his death in 1934.
Attributed to John Fery (American, 1859-1934) oil painting on canvas depicting a mountain landscape with river. Signed lower left. Viewable measures 31 1/4" x 25 1/2". Frame measures 37" x 31 1/2" x 2".
Title is John Fery's camping ground for bear and deer hunting, Grand Tetons near Jackson Lake Wyoming. 8 1/2" by 12" unframed, 12" by 15 1/2" framed. Oil on Board. Provenance: Andrew Jones Auctions 2012 lot 155. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Born in Austria, John Fery earned a strong reputation for dramatic paintings of western mountain landscape in the United States. Glacier National Park in northwest Montana was a popular subject for him. He was raised in a prominent, wealthy family that lived on an estate about nineteen miles northeast of Salzburg. His mother was Hungarian, and his father was born in Bohemia. S ome sources have written that he studied art in Dusseldorf, Germany with Peter Jansen, and also in Munich, Venice and Karlsruhe. But his "name does not appear in the records of the major art schools in any of these places, nor is there any record of his name at either the Vienna or Budapest academies." (Merrill 26) It is possible, however, that he received private instruction, and because of the sophistication of his painting, sources think it unlikely that he was self taught. An early interest in wilderness scenery led him to painting American landscapes and hunting scenes. In the mid 1880s, he came to America and lived in the German community in Milwaukee, and then in 1886, brought his family to the United States. His wife, Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1940), was born in Switzerland, and they had one child born near Munich and two others born in the United States. From 1886 to 1888, they lived in New York, and by 1890, Fery had made his first trip West. He visited Yellowstone Park in 1891, and indicated in his writings that he had been there even earlier. From 1892 to 1893, he led European nobility on hunting expeditions to the American Northwest, made possible by the completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The group's itinerary included Lake Michigan, Arizona with the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Wyoming. In 1895, he led a second expedition, and these ventures launched his career as a painter of the American West. During the late 1890s, he lived with his family in a cabin near Jackson Lake, Wyoming, but by 1900 was in Duluth, Minnesota, where he and Austrian-born painter Feodor von Luerzer painted mural decorations for the Fitger Brewery tap room. (In 1914, the murals were moved to the Pickwick Restaurant in Duluth, where they remained for many years). By 1903, Fery was in Milwaukee where he stayed until 1911, when he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota until 1918. His greatest patron became Louis Hill, owner of the Great Northern Railway and a resident of St. Paul. Hill commissioned Fery to paint scenes of Glacier Park and other scenic landscapes for placement in their hotels and railroad stations. Over the years the Railroad purchased a total of 362 works, and many of these paintings were large-scale, panoramas. In 1914, after several years of painting in Glacier Park, Fery did a series of about twelve oil paintings of Yellowstone for advertising purposes for the Northern Pacific Railroad. Itinerant, Fery seems never to have settled in one place for very long. From 1919 to 1923, he was living in Salt Lake City, Utah where he painted many landscapes, especially of Zion Canyon. Then he returned to Milwaukee until 1929, when he moved to Orcas Island near Bellingham, Washington. That same year a fire took all his possessions including thousands of sketches and many paintings. After that he moved to Everett, Washington where he died five years later. About 150 of his paintings have been found after his death, and the largest group are of Glacier National Park, but some are from California, Arizona and New Mexico and Wisconsin. One is from Venice, Italy and one from Bavaria. Most of the paintings are in private collections but the Burlington Northern Railway, successor to the Great Northern Railway, has work by Fery in the collection as does the Church of the Latter Day Saints Museum in Salt Lake City. In 1974, an exhibition of his work was held at the Milwaukee Public Library, and in 1975 at the Boise Gallery of Art in Boise, Idaho.
John Fery (American, 1859-1934), Untitled (Stag by a Mountain Lake), oil on board, signed lower right, board: 15"h x 23.5"w, overall (with frame): 18.5"h x 27"w
Title is Utah Sunset. 6" by 9 1/2" unframed. 10 1/2" by 14" framed. Oil on Board. Provenance: Purchased in Salt Lake City Utah while on Vacation in 1942 while on route to Yellowstone Park, W.M. McConahay Jeweler and Art Dealer Salt Lake City Utah. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Born in Austria, John Fery earned a strong reputation for dramatic paintings of western mountain landscape in the United States. Glacier National Park in northwest Montana was a popular subject for him. He was raised in a prominent, wealthy family that lived on an estate about nineteen miles northeast of Salzburg. His mother was Hungarian, and his father was born in Bohemia. S ome sources have written that he studied art in Dusseldorf, Germany with Peter Jansen, and also in Munich, Venice and Karlsruhe. But his "name does not appear in the records of the major art schools in any of these places, nor is there any record of his name at either the Vienna or Budapest academies." (Merrill 26) It is possible, however, that he received private instruction, and because of the sophistication of his painting, sources think it unlikely that he was self taught. An early interest in wilderness scenery led him to painting American landscapes and hunting scenes. In the mid 1880s, he came to America and lived in the German community in Milwaukee, and then in 1886, brought his family to the United States. His wife, Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1940), was born in Switzerland, and they had one child born near Munich and two others born in the United States. From 1886 to 1888, they lived in New York, and by 1890, Fery had made his first trip West. He visited Yellowstone Park in 1891, and indicated in his writings that he had been there even earlier. From 1892 to 1893, he led European nobility on hunting expeditions to the American Northwest, made possible by the completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The group's itinerary included Lake Michigan, Arizona with the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Wyoming. In 1895, he led a second expedition, and these ventures launched his career as a painter of the American West. During the late 1890s, he lived with his family in a cabin near Jackson Lake, Wyoming, but by 1900 was in Duluth, Minnesota, where he and Austrian-born painter Feodor von Luerzer painted mural decorations for the Fitger Brewery tap room. (In 1914, the murals were moved to the Pickwick Restaurant in Duluth, where they remained for many years). By 1903, Fery was in Milwaukee where he stayed until 1911, when he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota until 1918. His greatest patron became Louis Hill, owner of the Great Northern Railway and a resident of St. Paul. Hill commissioned Fery to paint scenes of Glacier Park and other scenic landscapes for placement in their hotels and railroad stations. Over the years the Railroad purchased a total of 362 works, and many of these paintings were large-scale, panoramas. In 1914, after several years of painting in Glacier Park, Fery did a series of about twelve oil paintings of Yellowstone for advertising purposes for the Northern Pacific Railroad. Itinerant, Fery seems never to have settled in one place for very long. From 1919 to 1923, he was living in Salt Lake City, Utah where he painted many landscapes, especially of Zion Canyon. Then he returned to Milwaukee until 1929, when he moved to Orcas Island near Bellingham, Washington. That same year a fire took all his possessions including thousands of sketches and many paintings. After that he moved to Everett, Washington where he died five years later. About 150 of his paintings have been found after his death, and the largest group are of Glacier National Park, but some are from California, Arizona and New Mexico and Wisconsin. One is from Venice, Italy and one from Bavaria. Most of the paintings are in private collections but the Burlington Northern Railway, successor to the Great Northern Railway, has work by Fery in the collection as does the Church of the Latter Day Saints Museum in Salt Lake City. In 1974, an exhibition of his work was held at the Milwaukee Public Library, and in 1975 at the Boise Gallery of Art in Boise, Idaho.
John Fery (American 1859-1934) View of the Grand Tetons near Jackson's Lake, Wyoming Depicting a mountain landscape with sparse autumn foliage, evergreens, and snow-capped peaks visible beyond Oil on board Signed lower left J. Fery, labeled verso 8 1/2" x 12"
John Fery (American/Austrian, 1859-1934) Yosemite Valley (California) oil on board signed J. Fery (lower right) 14 1/4 x 10 1/4 in. This lot is located in Chicago.
Title is Evening in Glacier Park. 5" by 7" unframed. 8 1/2" by 11" framed. Oil on Board. Provenance: W.M. McConahay Gallery, Salt Lake City, Utah. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Born in Austria, John Fery earned a strong reputation for dramatic paintings of western mountain landscape in the United States. Glacier National Park in northwest Montana was a popular subject for him. He was raised in a prominent, wealthy family that lived on an estate about nineteen miles northeast of Salzburg. His mother was Hungarian, and his father was born in Bohemia. S ome sources have written that he studied art in Dusseldorf, Germany with Peter Jansen, and also in Munich, Venice and Karlsruhe. But his "name does not appear in the records of the major art schools in any of these places, nor is there any record of his name at either the Vienna or Budapest academies." (Merrill 26) It is possible, however, that he received private instruction, and because of the sophistication of his painting, sources think it unlikely that he was self taught. An early interest in wilderness scenery led him to painting American landscapes and hunting scenes. In the mid 1880s, he came to America and lived in the German community in Milwaukee, and then in 1886, brought his family to the United States. His wife, Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1940), was born in Switzerland, and they had one child born near Munich and two others born in the United States. From 1886 to 1888, they lived in New York, and by 1890, Fery had made his first trip West. He visited Yellowstone Park in 1891, and indicated in his writings that he had been there even earlier. From 1892 to 1893, he led European nobility on hunting expeditions to the American Northwest, made possible by the completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The group's itinerary included Lake Michigan, Arizona with the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Wyoming. In 1895, he led a second expedition, and these ventures launched his career as a painter of the American West. During the late 1890s, he lived with his family in a cabin near Jackson Lake, Wyoming, but by 1900 was in Duluth, Minnesota, where he and Austrian-born painter Feodor von Luerzer painted mural decorations for the Fitger Brewery tap room. (In 1914, the murals were moved to the Pickwick Restaurant in Duluth, where they remained for many years). By 1903, Fery was in Milwaukee where he stayed until 1911, when he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota until 1918. His greatest patron became Louis Hill, owner of the Great Northern Railway and a resident of St. Paul. Hill commissioned Fery to paint scenes of Glacier Park and other scenic landscapes for placement in their hotels and railroad stations. Over the years the Railroad purchased a total of 362 works, and many of these paintings were large-scale, panoramas. In 1914, after several years of painting in Glacier Park, Fery did a series of about twelve oil paintings of Yellowstone for advertising purposes for the Northern Pacific Railroad. Itinerant, Fery seems never to have settled in one place for very long. From 1919 to 1923, he was living in Salt Lake City, Utah where he painted many landscapes, especially of Zion Canyon. Then he returned to Milwaukee until 1929, when he moved to Orcas Island near Bellingham, Washington. That same year a fire took all his possessions including thousands of sketches and many paintings. After that he moved to Everett, Washington where he died five years later. About 150 of his paintings have been found after his death, and the largest group are of Glacier National Park, but some are from California, Arizona and New Mexico and Wisconsin. One is from Venice, Italy and one from Bavaria. Most of the paintings are in private collections but the Burlington Northern Railway, successor to the Great Northern Railway, has work by Fery in the collection as does the Church of the Latter Day Saints Museum in Salt Lake City. In 1974, an exhibition of his work was held at the Milwaukee Public Library, and in 1975 at the Boise Gallery of Art in Boise, Idaho.
John Fery 1859 Straßwalchen – 1934 Everett (Washington) Aquarell und Gouache auf gräulichem Papier. U.li. signiert und datiert "J. Fery 92". Fest im Passepartout montiert und hinter Glas gerahmt. John Fery 1859 Straßwalchen – 1934 Everett (Washington) Gebürtig Johann Nepomuk Levy. Wohl aus dem ungarischen Raum stammend. Kindheit und Jugend in Österreich. Autodidaktische Aneignung der Malerei. 1886 Emigration in die USA. Betätigung als touristischer Jagdführer und Landschaftsmaler. Zahlreiche Aufträge von der Eisenbahngesellschaft Great Northern Railway für großformatige Landschaftsgemälde zur Bewerbung von Bahnreisen. Heute befinden sich Ferys Werke u.a. in der Sammlung des Minnesota Museum of Art.
John Fery (American, 1859-1934), "Yosemite Valley," oil on board, signed lower left, gallery label (W.M. McConahay, Salt Lake City, UT) affixed verso, board: 4.75"h x 6.75"w, overall (with frame): 8.75"h x 10.75"w
John Fery (American, 1859-1934), "Evening in Glacier Park," oil on board, signed lower left, gallery label (W.M. McConahay, Salt Lake City, UT) affixed verso, board: 4.75"h x 6.75"w, overall (with frame): 8.75"h x 10.75"w
title: Man on Bridge, Sun Mountain, Glacier National Park, Oil on board, signed American painter John Fery 1859-1934 measures 10" x 14”, framed 17” x 21 1/2”
John Fery (Austrian/American, 1859-1934) Landscape with Creek and Lone Figure Oil on board Signed J. Fery l.r. Property from the Susan Morrisey Livingstone Trust
JOHN FERY (Austrian / American, 1859-1934). After the Hunt, circa 1890, Oil on canvas. Signed lower right hand corner. Framed. - Sight: 18 x 28 inches (excluding frame)
Title is Moose at Sunrise 1932. Watercolor on Paper. 14" by 22" unframed. 23" by 31" framed. Provenance: Cornell Norby Gallery, from previous owner by descent. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Born in Austria, John Fery earned a strong reputation for dramatic paintings of western mountain landscape in the United States. Glacier National Park in northwest Montana was a popular subject for him. He was raised in a prominent, wealthy family that lived on an estate about nineteen miles northeast of Salzburg. His mother was Hungarian, and his father was born in Bohemia. S ome sources have written that he studied art in Dusseldorf, Germany with Peter Jansen, and also in Munich, Venice and Karlsruhe. But his "name does not appear in the records of the major art schools in any of these places, nor is there any record of his name at either the Vienna or Budapest academies." (Merrill 26) It is possible, however, that he received private instruction, and because of the sophistication of his painting, sources think it unlikely that he was self taught. An early interest in wilderness scenery led him to painting American landscapes and hunting scenes. In the mid 1880s, he came to America and lived in the German community in Milwaukee, and then in 1886, brought his family to the United States. His wife, Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1940), was born in Switzerland, and they had one child born near Munich and two others born in the United States. From 1886 to 1888, they lived in New York, and by 1890, Fery had made his first trip West. He visited Yellowstone Park in 1891, and indicated in his writings that he had been there even earlier. From 1892 to 1893, he led European nobility on hunting expeditions to the American Northwest, made possible by the completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The group's itinerary included Lake Michigan, Arizona with the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Wyoming. In 1895, he led a second expedition, and these ventures launched his career as a painter of the American West. During the late 1890s, he lived with his family in a cabin near Jackson Lake, Wyoming, but by 1900 was in Duluth, Minnesota, where he and Austrian-born painter Feodor von Luerzer painted mural decorations for the Fitger Brewery tap room. (In 1914, the murals were moved to the Pickwick Restaurant in Duluth, where they remained for many years). By 1903, Fery was in Milwaukee where he stayed until 1911, when he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota until 1918. His greatest patron became Louis Hill, owner of the Great Northern Railway and a resident of St. Paul. Hill commissioned Fery to paint scenes of Glacier Park and other scenic landscapes for placement in their hotels and railroad stations. Over the years the Railroad purchased a total of 362 works, and many of these paintings were large-scale, panoramas. In 1914, after several years of painting in Glacier Park, Fery did a series of about twelve oil paintings of Yellowstone for advertising purposes for the Northern Pacific Railroad. Itinerant, Fery seems never to have settled in one place for very long. From 1919 to 1923, he was living in Salt Lake City, Utah where he painted many landscapes, especially of Zion Canyon. Then he returned to Milwaukee until 1929, when he moved to Orcas Island near Bellingham, Washington. That same year a fire took all his possessions including thousands of sketches and many paintings. After that he moved to Everett, Washington where he died five years later. About 150 of his paintings have been found after his death, and the largest group are of Glacier National Park, but some are from California, Arizona and New Mexico and Wisconsin. One is from Venice, Italy and one from Bavaria. Most of the paintings are in private collections but the Burlington Northern Railway, successor to the Great Northern Railway, has work by Fery in the collection as does the Church of the Latter Day Saints Museum in Salt Lake City. In 1974, an exhibition of his work was held at the Milwaukee Public Library, and in 1975 at the Boise Gallery of Art in Boise, Idaho.
Title is Cascade Range. Oil on Board. 11 3/4" by 15 7/8" framed. Provenance: Private Collection New Mexico John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Born in Austria, John Fery earned a strong reputation for dramatic paintings of western mountain landscape in the United States. Glacier National Park in northwest Montana was a popular subject for him. He was raised in a prominent, wealthy family that lived on an estate about nineteen miles northeast of Salzburg. His mother was Hungarian, and his father was born in Bohemia. S ome sources have written that he studied art in Dusseldorf, Germany with Peter Jansen, and also in Munich, Venice and Karlsruhe. But his "name does not appear in the records of the major art schools in any of these places, nor is there any record of his name at either the Vienna or Budapest academies." (Merrill 26) It is possible, however, that he received private instruction, and because of the sophistication of his painting, sources think it unlikely that he was self taught. An early interest in wilderness scenery led him to painting American landscapes and hunting scenes. In the mid 1880s, he came to America and lived in the German community in Milwaukee, and then in 1886, brought his family to the United States. His wife, Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1940), was born in Switzerland, and they had one child born near Munich and two others born in the United States. From 1886 to 1888, they lived in New York, and by 1890, Fery had made his first trip West. He visited Yellowstone Park in 1891, and indicated in his writings that he had been there even earlier. From 1892 to 1893, he led European nobility on hunting expeditions to the American Northwest, made possible by the completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The group's itinerary included Lake Michigan, Arizona with the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Wyoming. In 1895, he led a second expedition, and these ventures launched his career as a painter of the American West. During the late 1890s, he lived with his family in a cabin near Jackson Lake, Wyoming, but by 1900 was in Duluth, Minnesota, where he and Austrian-born painter Feodor von Luerzer painted mural decorations for the Fitger Brewery tap room. (In 1914, the murals were moved to the Pickwick Restaurant in Duluth, where they remained for many years). By 1903, Fery was in Milwaukee where he stayed until 1911, when he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota until 1918. His greatest patron became Louis Hill, owner of the Great Northern Railway and a resident of St. Paul. Hill commissioned Fery to paint scenes of Glacier Park and other scenic landscapes for placement in their hotels and railroad stations. Over the years the Railroad purchased a total of 362 works, and many of these paintings were large-scale, panoramas. In 1914, after several years of painting in Glacier Park, Fery did a series of about twelve oil paintings of Yellowstone for advertising purposes for the Northern Pacific Railroad. Itinerant, Fery seems never to have settled in one place for very long. From 1919 to 1923, he was living in Salt Lake City, Utah where he painted many landscapes, especially of Zion Canyon. Then he returned to Milwaukee until 1929, when he moved to Orcas Island near Bellingham, Washington. That same year a fire took all his possessions including thousands of sketches and many paintings. After that he moved to Everett, Washington where he died five years later. About 150 of his paintings have been found after his death, and the largest group are of Glacier National Park, but some are from California, Arizona and New Mexico and Wisconsin. One is from Venice, Italy and one from Bavaria. Most of the paintings are in private collections but the Burlington Northern Railway, successor to the Great Northern Railway, has work by Fery in the collection as does the Church of the Latter Day Saints Museum in Salt Lake City. In 1974, an exhibition of his work was held at the Milwaukee Public Library, and in 1975 at the Boise Gallery of Art in Boise, Idaho.
Title is: Going To Sun Mt. Glacier Park. Measures 25" x 17" framed. Measures 18" x 10" unframed. Condition Report: Inpainting: A 6" line along the stretcher bars at the left and upper left side of the painting. 6 other areas of inpainting including: upper frame edge and lower right stretcher bar area. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Johann Nepomuk Levy--John Fery's name before he Americanized it--was born in Strasswalchen, Austria on March 25, 1859 to Hungarians Jahn and Mary Levy. Jahn was temporarily working for the railroad but soon returned to his wife's prosperous family farm near Pressburg, Hungary. Johann's idyllic childhood filled with painting, hunting, and hiking came to an end in his teenage years when both parents died unexpectedly. An inheritance allowed him to attend the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts where he studied many art styles including Realism, Romanticism, and Impressionism. Further formal training was obtained at the prestigious Munich Royal Academy of Fine Arts and the Dusseldorf Academy. As did many other European artists, Johann immigrated to the United States to seek the opportunities that the "American Dream" promised. A short time after his arrival in 1883, the young artist changed his name to John Fery. He soon found work in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, "the German Athens," where a number of German immigrant artists were hired to work on giant panorama paintings. Fery along with others was assigned to paint the landscape for the cyclorama Battle of Missionary Ridge (1883-1884). Many of these works were hundreds of feet long and weighed several tons. They traveled by train to cities all over the country captivating adoring audiences. With a new name and career, Fery headed back to Europe in 1884 to marry Parisian Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1930). After living near Lake Ammersee outside Munich where their first child, daughter Fiametta was born, the couple headed back to the United States and explored the Hudson River Valley in eastern New York. This gave him an opportunity to study the works of Bierstadt, Hill, and Moran, among others. In 1890 they relocated to booming Duluth, Minnesota to work on a mural for the Fitger Brewing Company. It was there that Louis Hill first saw Fery's work. But Fery dreamed of exploring the Rockies, and in 1891 he rode the Northern Pacific Railway to Yellowstone National Park and eventually all the way to Seattle. During the trip, he sketched, painted, and photographed the awe inspiring beauty of the American West. However, two years later a depression hit America which made the prospects for living off an artist's income impossible. Showing "Yankee ingenuity," in 1893 and 1895 Fery morphed into a hunting guide and toured groups of wealthy Europeans throughout the West. Louis Hill noted from afar the rising fame of Fery who was considered an outstanding landscape artist with the physicality to hike, climb, and camp in formidable terrain. As the economy improved, Fery found steady work back in Milwaukee, a setting where the family felt most comfortable. Through the tireless efforts of George Bird Grinnell (1849-1938) and others, The "Alps of North America" in northwestern Montana was designated as Glacier National Park in 1910. Louis W. Hill became obsessed with developing the park into a premiere world destination, which could be conveniently accessed by his Great Northern Railway. Fery was given the daunting task of producing hundreds of large paintings from 1910 to 1913 that could be distributed throughout America and around the world to attract tourists to the park. His work found its way to the walls of train depots, hotels, ships, travel agencies, colleges, and other institutions. It seemed Fery's art was everywhere. In addition, Fery's paintings were found in the chalets and lodges that the Great Northern built mainly between 1910 and 1915. Although he was paid less than forty dollars a painting, Fery was almost maniacal in his work. He created a new painting every few days. Early on in their time in Glacier, the Fery family was neighbors of Charlie and Nancy Russell (1878-1940) who had a summer retreat, Bull Head Lodge, on Lake McDonald in western Glacier National Park. A number of Fery paintings survive that were painted near Bull Head Lodge. Moving on, in 1915 John Fery traveled to San Francisco to take in the Panama-Pacific International Exposition where artist's works from all over the world--including a number of Fery's Glacier Park oils--were on display. Louis Hill who had a vacation home south of the Bay area helped Fery obtain commissions from the Southern Pacific Railway. The work took him to Yosemite National Park; Lake Tahoe; Central and Southern California; and Arizona. In 1916 Fery headed to Portland, Oregon where he completed a large mural for Charles "Sam" Jackson (1860-1924), owner of the Oregon Journal, in the Jackson Tower building in downtown Portland. Fery also painted landscapes of the Oregon Coast, Columbia River, and Cascade Mountains. Later in 1916 John and Mary Fery moved to Spokane to be closer to family since both son Carl and daughter Lucienne were living in eastern Washington State. Frequent trips were made to northern and southern Idaho to paint the magnificent lakes and mountains of the area. In time, Lucienne moved with her husband to Salt Lake City, and eventually they were followed there by her parents. John Fery had his art displayed in several local art stores while he ventured to the Southern Utah canyon country of Zion and Bryce to capture their magnificence on canvas. By 1923 the Ferys were living back in Milwaukee. John would soon turn sixty-five years old. In 1925 Louis Hill once again called on his favorite landscape artist to return to Glacier. Hill went into high gear promoting the park with an array of artists including Oliver Grover (1861-1927), Elsa Jemne (1888-1974), Kathryn Leighton (1875-1952), Adolph Heinze (1887-1958), Joe Scheuerle (1873-1948), and Winold Reiss (1888-1953). Fery's agreement with the Great Northern Railway was similar to the original one way back in 1910. He would be paid $200 every month to produce four to six canvases. Especially important to Hill was sending Fery to Wateron Lakes National Park in Canada, just north of Glacier, to paint the area around the newly constructed Princes of Wales Hotel (1927). In 1929 the Ferys moved to Orcas Island, Washington northwest of Seattle to be closer to family. John was working out of a studio next to the home of his daughter Fiametta and her husband, F. Carl Lange, when a fire destroyed the studio and all its contents. Many of his paintings that he was finishing for the Great Northern were destroyed, much to the consternation of the railway. The stock market crash and subsequent Depression made Fery's work prospects grim. To make matters worse, Louis Hill stepped down as chairman of the board of the Great Northern. The artist's biggest supporter was now gone. From 1925 to 1930, Fery completed approximately seventy-five paintings for the railway. It would be his last major commission. John kept a studio in Everett, Washington until his death on September 10, 1934. John Fery's art has been featured in many exhibitions and catalogs over the years including: Milwaukee Public Library (1974); Boise Art Gallery (1975); the Iron Horse exhibition and catalog at the Minnesota Museum of Art (1976); The Burlington Northern Collection catalog (1982); Mountain Majesty: The Art of John Fery catalog and exhibition sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. William P. Healey, and Mr. and Mrs. John B. Fery held at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, Jackson Hole, Wyoming (1998), C.M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, Montana (1998), and Boise Art Museum, Idaho (1999); John Fery: Artist of the Rockies, catalog and exhibition at the Hockaday Museum in Kalispell (2010); and Painting the Wilderness: John Fery and Contemporaries exhibition at the Wildling Museum in Solvang, California near Santa Barbara (2014), among others.
Title: John Fery (1859-1934), Going to the Sun Mountain, Lake St. Mary, Glacier National Park Dimensions: 10 x 18 Framed Dimensions: 17 x 24 7/8 x 2 3/8 Signature: signed lower left: J. Fery verso: titled (Going to Sun Mt., Glacier Park (indecipherable))
John Fery (born Johann Nepomuk Levy) (Austrian/American, 1859-1934). Watercolor on artist board painting depicting an idyllic landscape. Signed along the lower right.
Oil on Board. Title is Lake St. Mary Glacier Park at the Narrows. 18 3/4" by 28 3/4" framed, 14" by 24" unframed. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Johann Nepomuk Levy--John Fery's name before he Americanized it--was born in Strasswalchen, Austria on March 25, 1859 to Hungarians Jahn and Mary Levy. Jahn was temporarily working for the railroad but soon returned to his wife's prosperous family farm near Pressburg, Hungary. Johann's idyllic childhood filled with painting, hunting, and hiking came to an end in his teenage years when both parents died unexpectedly. An inheritance allowed him to attend the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts where he studied many art styles including Realism, Romanticism, and Impressionism. Further formal training was obtained at the prestigious Munich Royal Academy of Fine Arts and the Dusseldorf Academy. As did many other European artists, Johann immigrated to the United States to seek the opportunities that the "American Dream" promised. A short time after his arrival in 1883, the young artist changed his name to John Fery. He soon found work in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, "the German Athens," where a number of German immigrant artists were hired to work on giant panorama paintings. Fery along with others was assigned to paint the landscape for the cyclorama Battle of Missionary Ridge (1883-1884). Many of these works were hundreds of feet long and weighed several tons. They traveled by train to cities all over the country captivating adoring audiences. With a new name and career, Fery headed back to Europe in 1884 to marry Parisian Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1930). After living near Lake Ammersee outside Munich where their first child, daughter Fiametta was born, the couple headed back to the United States and explored the Hudson River Valley in eastern New York. This gave him an opportunity to study the works of Bierstadt, Hill, and Moran, among others. In 1890 they relocated to booming Duluth, Minnesota to work on a mural for the Fitger Brewing Company. It was there that Louis Hill first saw Fery's work. But Fery dreamed of exploring the Rockies, and in 1891 he rode the Northern Pacific Railway to Yellowstone National Park and eventually all the way to Seattle. During the trip, he sketched, painted, and photographed the awe inspiring beauty of the American West. However, two years later a depression hit America which made the prospects for living off an artist's income impossible. Showing "Yankee ingenuity," in 1893 and 1895 Fery morphed into a hunting guide and toured groups of wealthy Europeans throughout the West. Louis Hill noted from afar the rising fame of Fery who was considered an outstanding landscape artist with the physicality to hike, climb, and camp in formidable terrain. As the economy improved, Fery found steady work back in Milwaukee, a setting where the family felt most comfortable. Through the tireless efforts of George Bird Grinnell (1849-1938) and others, The "Alps of North America" in northwestern Montana was designated as Glacier National Park in 1910. Louis W. Hill became obsessed with developing the park into a premiere world destination, which could be conveniently accessed by his Great Northern Railway. Fery was given the daunting task of producing hundreds of large paintings from 1910 to 1913 that could be distributed throughout America and around the world to attract tourists to the park. His work found its way to the walls of train depots, hotels, ships, travel agencies, colleges, and other institutions. It seemed Fery's art was everywhere. In addition, Fery's paintings were found in the chalets and lodges that the Great Northern built mainly between 1910 and 1915. Although he was paid less than forty dollars a painting, Fery was almost maniacal in his work. He created a new painting every few days. Early on in their time in Glacier, the Fery family was neighbors of Charlie and Nancy Russell (1878-1940) who had a summer retreat, Bull Head Lodge, on Lake McDonald in western Glacier National Park. A number of Fery paintings survive that were painted near Bull Head Lodge. Moving on, in 1915 John Fery traveled to San Francisco to take in the Panama-Pacific International Exposition where artist's works from all over the world--including a number of Fery's Glacier Park oils--were on display. Louis Hill who had a vacation home south of the Bay area helped Fery obtain commissions from the Southern Pacific Railway. The work took him to Yosemite National Park; Lake Tahoe; Central and Southern California; and Arizona. In 1916 Fery headed to Portland, Oregon where he completed a large mural for Charles "Sam" Jackson (1860-1924), owner of the Oregon Journal, in the Jackson Tower building in downtown Portland. Fery also painted landscapes of the Oregon Coast, Columbia River, and Cascade Mountains. Later in 1916 John and Mary Fery moved to Spokane to be closer to family since both son Carl and daughter Lucienne were living in eastern Washington State. Frequent trips were made to northern and southern Idaho to paint the magnificent lakes and mountains of the area. In time, Lucienne moved with her husband to Salt Lake City, and eventually they were followed there by her parents. John Fery had his art displayed in several local art stores while he ventured to the Southern Utah canyon country of Zion and Bryce to capture their magnificence on canvas. By 1923 the Ferys were living back in Milwaukee. John would soon turn sixty-five years old. In 1925 Louis Hill once again called on his favorite landscape artist to return to Glacier. Hill went into high gear promoting the park with an array of artists including Oliver Grover (1861-1927), Elsa Jemne (1888-1974), Kathryn Leighton (1875-1952), Adolph Heinze (1887-1958), Joe Scheuerle (1873-1948), and Winold Reiss (1888-1953). Fery's agreement with the Great Northern Railway was similar to the original one way back in 1910. He would be paid $200 every month to produce four to six canvases. Especially important to Hill was sending Fery to Wateron Lakes National Park in Canada, just north of Glacier, to paint the area around the newly constructed Princes of Wales Hotel (1927). In 1929 the Ferys moved to Orcas Island, Washington northwest of Seattle to be closer to family. John was working out of a studio next to the home of his daughter Fiametta and her husband, F. Carl Lange, when a fire destroyed the studio and all its contents. Many of his paintings that he was finishing for the Great Northern were destroyed, much to the consternation of the railway. The stock market crash and subsequent Depression made Fery's work prospects grim. To make matters worse, Louis Hill stepped down as chairman of the board of the Great Northern. The artist's biggest supporter was now gone. From 1925 to 1930, Fery completed approximately seventy-five paintings for the railway. It would be his last major commission. John kept a studio in Everett, Washington until his death on September 10, 1934. John Fery's art has been featured in many exhibitions and catalogs over the years including: Milwaukee Public Library (1974); Boise Art Gallery (1975); the Iron Horse exhibition and catalog at the Minnesota Museum of Art (1976); The Burlington Northern Collection catalog (1982); Mountain Majesty: The Art of John Fery catalog and exhibition sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. William P. Healey, and Mr. and Mrs. John B. Fery held at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, Jackson Hole, Wyoming (1998), C.M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, Montana (1998), and Boise Art Museum, Idaho (1999); John Fery: Artist of the Rockies, catalog and exhibition at the Hockaday Museum in Kalispell (2010); and Painting the Wilderness: John Fery and Contemporaries exhibition at the Wildling Museum in Solvang, California near Santa Barbara (2014), among others.
36" by 27" framed. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Johann Nepomuk Levy--John Fery's name before he Americanized it--was born in Strasswalchen, Austria on March 25, 1859 to Hungarians Jahn and Mary Levy. Jahn was temporarily working for the railroad but soon returned to his wife's prosperous family farm near Pressburg, Hungary. Johann's idyllic childhood filled with painting, hunting, and hiking came to an end in his teenage years when both parents died unexpectedly. An inheritance allowed him to attend the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts where he studied many art styles including Realism, Romanticism, and Impressionism. Further formal training was obtained at the prestigious Munich Royal Academy of Fine Arts and the Dusseldorf Academy. As did many other European artists, Johann immigrated to the United States to seek the opportunities that the "American Dream" promised. A short time after his arrival in 1883, the young artist changed his name to John Fery. He soon found work in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, "the German Athens," where a number of German immigrant artists were hired to work on giant panorama paintings. Fery along with others was assigned to paint the landscape for the cyclorama Battle of Missionary Ridge (1883-1884). Many of these works were hundreds of feet long and weighed several tons. They traveled by train to cities all over the country captivating adoring audiences. With a new name and career, Fery headed back to Europe in 1884 to marry Parisian Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1930). After living near Lake Ammersee outside Munich where their first child, daughter Fiametta was born, the couple headed back to the United States and explored the Hudson River Valley in eastern New York. This gave him an opportunity to study the works of Bierstadt, Hill, and Moran, among others. In 1890 they relocated to booming Duluth, Minnesota to work on a mural for the Fitger Brewing Company. It was there that Louis Hill first saw Fery's work. But Fery dreamed of exploring the Rockies, and in 1891 he rode the Northern Pacific Railway to Yellowstone National Park and eventually all the way to Seattle. During the trip, he sketched, painted, and photographed the awe inspiring beauty of the American West. However, two years later a depression hit America which made the prospects for living off an artist's income impossible. Showing "Yankee ingenuity," in 1893 and 1895 Fery morphed into a hunting guide and toured groups of wealthy Europeans throughout the West. Louis Hill noted from afar the rising fame of Fery who was considered an outstanding landscape artist with the physicality to hike, climb, and camp in formidable terrain. As the economy improved, Fery found steady work back in Milwaukee, a setting where the family felt most comfortable. Through the tireless efforts of George Bird Grinnell (1849-1938) and others, The "Alps of North America" in northwestern Montana was designated as Glacier National Park in 1910. Louis W. Hill became obsessed with developing the park into a premiere world destination, which could be conveniently accessed by his Great Northern Railway. Fery was given the daunting task of producing hundreds of large paintings from 1910 to 1913 that could be distributed throughout America and around the world to attract tourists to the park. His work found its way to the walls of train depots, hotels, ships, travel agencies, colleges, and other institutions. It seemed Fery's art was everywhere. In addition, Fery's paintings were found in the chalets and lodges that the Great Northern built mainly between 1910 and 1915. Although he was paid less than forty dollars a painting, Fery was almost maniacal in his work. He created a new painting every few days. Early on in their time in Glacier, the Fery family was neighbors of Charlie and Nancy Russell (1878-1940) who had a summer retreat, Bull Head Lodge, on Lake McDonald in western Glacier National Park. A number of Fery paintings survive that were painted near Bull Head Lodge. Moving on, in 1915 John Fery traveled to San Francisco to take in the Panama-Pacific International Exposition where artist's works from all over the world--including a number of Fery's Glacier Park oils--were on display. Louis Hill who had a vacation home south of the Bay area helped Fery obtain commissions from the Southern Pacific Railway. The work took him to Yosemite National Park; Lake Tahoe; Central and Southern California; and Arizona. In 1916 Fery headed to Portland, Oregon where he completed a large mural for Charles "Sam" Jackson (1860-1924), owner of the Oregon Journal, in the Jackson Tower building in downtown Portland. Fery also painted landscapes of the Oregon Coast, Columbia River, and Cascade Mountains. Later in 1916 John and Mary Fery moved to Spokane to be closer to family since both son Carl and daughter Lucienne were living in eastern Washington State. Frequent trips were made to northern and southern Idaho to paint the magnificent lakes and mountains of the area. In time, Lucienne moved with her husband to Salt Lake City, and eventually they were followed there by her parents. John Fery had his art displayed in several local art stores while he ventured to the Southern Utah canyon country of Zion and Bryce to capture their magnificence on canvas. By 1923 the Ferys were living back in Milwaukee. John would soon turn sixty-five years old. In 1925 Louis Hill once again called on his favorite landscape artist to return to Glacier. Hill went into high gear promoting the park with an array of artists including Oliver Grover (1861-1927), Elsa Jemne (1888-1974), Kathryn Leighton (1875-1952), Adolph Heinze (1887-1958), Joe Scheuerle (1873-1948), and Winold Reiss (1888-1953). Fery's agreement with the Great Northern Railway was similar to the original one way back in 1910. He would be paid $200 every month to produce four to six canvases. Especially important to Hill was sending Fery to Wateron Lakes National Park in Canada, just north of Glacier, to paint the area around the newly constructed Princes of Wales Hotel (1927). In 1929 the Ferys moved to Orcas Island, Washington northwest of Seattle to be closer to family. John was working out of a studio next to the home of his daughter Fiametta and her husband, F. Carl Lange, when a fire destroyed the studio and all its contents. Many of his paintings that he was finishing for the Great Northern were destroyed, much to the consternation of the railway. The stock market crash and subsequent Depression made Fery's work prospects grim. To make matters worse, Louis Hill stepped down as chairman of the board of the Great Northern. The artist's biggest supporter was now gone. From 1925 to 1930, Fery completed approximately seventy-five paintings for the railway. It would be his last major commission. John kept a studio in Everett, Washington until his death on September 10, 1934. John Fery's art has been featured in many exhibitions and catalogs over the years including: Milwaukee Public Library (1974); Boise Art Gallery (1975); the Iron Horse exhibition and catalog at the Minnesota Museum of Art (1976); The Burlington Northern Collection catalog (1982); Mountain Majesty: The Art of John Fery catalog and exhibition sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. William P. Healey, and Mr. and Mrs. John B. Fery held at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, Jackson Hole, Wyoming (1998), C.M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, Montana (1998), and Boise Art Museum, Idaho (1999); John Fery: Artist of the Rockies, catalog and exhibition at the Hockaday Museum in Kalispell (2010); and Painting the Wilderness: John Fery and Contemporaries exhibition at the Wildling Museum in Solvang, California near Santa Barbara (2014), among others.
John Fery (Austrian/American, 1859-1934) Lake St. Mary - Glacier Park oil on canvas signed J. Fery (lower left); titled (verso) 14 x 24 inches Property from the Collection of Mr. Timothy Stenger
24" by 39" unframed, 32" by 46" framed. Oil on Canvas. Location is most likely Cosley Lake. Has two small spots of inpainting as shown. Gorgeous painting. Painted for and given to the Tripoli Temple in Wisconsin. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Johann Nepomuk Levy--John Fery's name before he Americanized it--was born in Strasswalchen, Austria on March 25, 1859 to Hungarians Jahn and Mary Levy. Jahn was temporarily working for the railroad but soon returned to his wife's prosperous family farm near Pressburg, Hungary. Johann's idyllic childhood filled with painting, hunting, and hiking came to an end in his teenage years when both parents died unexpectedly. An inheritance allowed him to attend the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts where he studied many art styles including Realism, Romanticism, and Impressionism. Further formal training was obtained at the prestigious Munich Royal Academy of Fine Arts and the Dusseldorf Academy. As did many other European artists, Johann immigrated to the United States to seek the opportunities that the "American Dream" promised. A short time after his arrival in 1883, the young artist changed his name to John Fery. He soon found work in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, "the German Athens," where a number of German immigrant artists were hired to work on giant panorama paintings. Fery along with others was assigned to paint the landscape for the cyclorama Battle of Missionary Ridge (1883-1884). Many of these works were hundreds of feet long and weighed several tons. They traveled by train to cities all over the country captivating adoring audiences. With a new name and career, Fery headed back to Europe in 1884 to marry Parisian Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1930). After living near Lake Ammersee outside Munich where their first child, daughter Fiametta was born, the couple headed back to the United States and explored the Hudson River Valley in eastern New York. This gave him an opportunity to study the works of Bierstadt, Hill, and Moran, among others. In 1890 they relocated to booming Duluth, Minnesota to work on a mural for the Fitger Brewing Company. It was there that Louis Hill first saw Fery's work. But Fery dreamed of exploring the Rockies, and in 1891 he rode the Northern Pacific Railway to Yellowstone National Park and eventually all the way to Seattle. During the trip, he sketched, painted, and photographed the awe inspiring beauty of the American West. However, two years later a depression hit America which made the prospects for living off an artist's income impossible. Showing "Yankee ingenuity," in 1893 and 1895 Fery morphed into a hunting guide and toured groups of wealthy Europeans throughout the West. Louis Hill noted from afar the rising fame of Fery who was considered an outstanding landscape artist with the physicality to hike, climb, and camp in formidable terrain. As the economy improved, Fery found steady work back in Milwaukee, a setting where the family felt most comfortable. Through the tireless efforts of George Bird Grinnell (1849-1938) and others, The "Alps of North America" in northwestern Montana was designated as Glacier National Park in 1910. Louis W. Hill became obsessed with developing the park into a premiere world destination, which could be conveniently accessed by his Great Northern Railway. Fery was given the daunting task of producing hundreds of large paintings from 1910 to 1913 that could be distributed throughout America and around the world to attract tourists to the park. His work found its way to the walls of train depots, hotels, ships, travel agencies, colleges, and other institutions. It seemed Fery's art was everywhere. In addition, Fery's paintings were found in the chalets and lodges that the Great Northern built mainly between 1910 and 1915. Although he was paid less than forty dollars a painting, Fery was almost maniacal in his work. He created a new painting every few days. Early on in their time in Glacier, the Fery family was neighbors of Charlie and Nancy Russell (1878-1940) who had a summer retreat, Bull Head Lodge, on Lake McDonald in western Glacier National Park. A number of Fery paintings survive that were painted near Bull Head Lodge. Moving on, in 1915 John Fery traveled to San Francisco to take in the Panama-Pacific International Exposition where artist's works from all over the world--including a number of Fery's Glacier Park oils--were on display. Louis Hill who had a vacation home south of the Bay area helped Fery obtain commissions from the Southern Pacific Railway. The work took him to Yosemite National Park; Lake Tahoe; Central and Southern California; and Arizona. In 1916 Fery headed to Portland, Oregon where he completed a large mural for Charles "Sam" Jackson (1860-1924), owner of the Oregon Journal, in the Jackson Tower building in downtown Portland. Fery also painted landscapes of the Oregon Coast, Columbia River, and Cascade Mountains. Later in 1916 John and Mary Fery moved to Spokane to be closer to family since both son Carl and daughter Lucienne were living in eastern Washington State. Frequent trips were made to northern and southern Idaho to paint the magnificent lakes and mountains of the area. In time, Lucienne moved with her husband to Salt Lake City, and eventually they were followed there by her parents. John Fery had his art displayed in several local art stores while he ventured to the Southern Utah canyon country of Zion and Bryce to capture their magnificence on canvas. By 1923 the Ferys were living back in Milwaukee. John would soon turn sixty-five years old. In 1925 Louis Hill once again called on his favorite landscape artist to return to Glacier. Hill went into high gear promoting the park with an array of artists including Oliver Grover (1861-1927), Elsa Jemne (1888-1974), Kathryn Leighton (1875-1952), Adolph Heinze (1887-1958), Joe Scheuerle (1873-1948), and Winold Reiss (1888-1953). Fery's agreement with the Great Northern Railway was similar to the original one way back in 1910. He would be paid $200 every month to produce four to six canvases. Especially important to Hill was sending Fery to Wateron Lakes National Park in Canada, just north of Glacier, to paint the area around the newly constructed Princes of Wales Hotel (1927). In 1929 the Ferys moved to Orcas Island, Washington northwest of Seattle to be closer to family. John was working out of a studio next to the home of his daughter Fiametta and her husband, F. Carl Lange, when a fire destroyed the studio and all its contents. Many of his paintings that he was finishing for the Great Northern were destroyed, much to the consternation of the railway. The stock market crash and subsequent Depression made Fery's work prospects grim. To make matters worse, Louis Hill stepped down as chairman of the board of the Great Northern. The artist's biggest supporter was now gone. From 1925 to 1930, Fery completed approximately seventy-five paintings for the railway. It would be his last major commission. John kept a studio in Everett, Washington until his death on September 10, 1934. John Fery's art has been featured in many exhibitions and catalogs over the years including: Milwaukee Public Library (1974); Boise Art Gallery (1975); the Iron Horse exhibition and catalog at the Minnesota Museum of Art (1976); The Burlington Northern Collection catalog (1982); Mountain Majesty: The Art of John Fery catalog and exhibition sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. William P. Healey, and Mr. and Mrs. John B. Fery held at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, Jackson Hole, Wyoming (1998), C.M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, Montana (1998), and Boise Art Museum, Idaho (1999); John Fery: Artist of the Rockies, catalog and exhibition at the Hockaday Museum in Kalispell (2010); and Painting the Wilderness: John Fery and Contemporaries exhibition at the Wildling Museum in Solvang, California near Santa Barbara (2014), among others.
7 1/8" by 8 7/8". Title is California Cypress. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Johann Nepomuk Levy--John Fery's name before he Americanized it--was born in Strasswalchen, Austria on March 25, 1859 to Hungarians Jahn and Mary Levy. Jahn was temporarily working for the railroad but soon returned to his wife's prosperous family farm near Pressburg, Hungary. Johann's idyllic childhood filled with painting, hunting, and hiking came to an end in his teenage years when both parents died unexpectedly. An inheritance allowed him to attend the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts where he studied many art styles including Realism, Romanticism, and Impressionism. Further formal training was obtained at the prestigious Munich Royal Academy of Fine Arts and the Dusseldorf Academy. As did many other European artists, Johann immigrated to the United States to seek the opportunities that the "American Dream" promised. A short time after his arrival in 1883, the young artist changed his name to John Fery. He soon found work in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, "the German Athens," where a number of German immigrant artists were hired to work on giant panorama paintings. Fery along with others was assigned to paint the landscape for the cyclorama Battle of Missionary Ridge (1883-1884). Many of these works were hundreds of feet long and weighed several tons. They traveled by train to cities all over the country captivating adoring audiences. With a new name and career, Fery headed back to Europe in 1884 to marry Parisian Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1930). After living near Lake Ammersee outside Munich where their first child, daughter Fiametta was born, the couple headed back to the United States and explored the Hudson River Valley in eastern New York. This gave him an opportunity to study the works of Bierstadt, Hill, and Moran, among others. In 1890 they relocated to booming Duluth, Minnesota to work on a mural for the Fitger Brewing Company. It was there that Louis Hill first saw Fery's work. But Fery dreamed of exploring the Rockies, and in 1891 he rode the Northern Pacific Railway to Yellowstone National Park and eventually all the way to Seattle. During the trip, he sketched, painted, and photographed the awe inspiring beauty of the American West. However, two years later a depression hit America which made the prospects for living off an artist's income impossible. Showing "Yankee ingenuity," in 1893 and 1895 Fery morphed into a hunting guide and toured groups of wealthy Europeans throughout the West. Louis Hill noted from afar the rising fame of Fery who was considered an outstanding landscape artist with the physicality to hike, climb, and camp in formidable terrain. As the economy improved, Fery found steady work back in Milwaukee, a setting where the family felt most comfortable. Through the tireless efforts of George Bird Grinnell (1849-1938) and others, The "Alps of North America" in northwestern Montana was designated as Glacier National Park in 1910. Louis W. Hill became obsessed with developing the park into a premiere world destination, which could be conveniently accessed by his Great Northern Railway. Fery was given the daunting task of producing hundreds of large paintings from 1910 to 1913 that could be distributed throughout America and around the world to attract tourists to the park. His work found its way to the walls of train depots, hotels, ships, travel agencies, colleges, and other institutions. It seemed Fery's art was everywhere. In addition, Fery's paintings were found in the chalets and lodges that the Great Northern built mainly between 1910 and 1915. Although he was paid less than forty dollars a painting, Fery was almost maniacal in his work. He created a new painting every few days. Early on in their time in Glacier, the Fery family was neighbors of Charlie and Nancy Russell (1878-1940) who had a summer retreat, Bull Head Lodge, on Lake McDonald in western Glacier National Park. A number of Fery paintings survive that were painted near Bull Head Lodge. Moving on, in 1915 John Fery traveled to San Francisco to take in the Panama-Pacific International Exposition where artist's works from all over the world--including a number of Fery's Glacier Park oils--were on display. Louis Hill who had a vacation home south of the Bay area helped Fery obtain commissions from the Southern Pacific Railway. The work took him to Yosemite National Park; Lake Tahoe; Central and Southern California; and Arizona. In 1916 Fery headed to Portland, Oregon where he completed a large mural for Charles "Sam" Jackson (1860-1924), owner of the Oregon Journal, in the Jackson Tower building in downtown Portland. Fery also painted landscapes of the Oregon Coast, Columbia River, and Cascade Mountains. Later in 1916 John and Mary Fery moved to Spokane to be closer to family since both son Carl and daughter Lucienne were living in eastern Washington State. Frequent trips were made to northern and southern Idaho to paint the magnificent lakes and mountains of the area. In time, Lucienne moved with her husband to Salt Lake City, and eventually they were followed there by her parents. John Fery had his art displayed in several local art stores while he ventured to the Southern Utah canyon country of Zion and Bryce to capture their magnificence on canvas. By 1923 the Ferys were living back in Milwaukee. John would soon turn sixty-five years old. In 1925 Louis Hill once again called on his favorite landscape artist to return to Glacier. Hill went into high gear promoting the park with an array of artists including Oliver Grover (1861-1927), Elsa Jemne (1888-1974), Kathryn Leighton (1875-1952), Adolph Heinze (1887-1958), Joe Scheuerle (1873-1948), and Winold Reiss (1888-1953). Fery's agreement with the Great Northern Railway was similar to the original one way back in 1910. He would be paid $200 every month to produce four to six canvases. Especially important to Hill was sending Fery to Wateron Lakes National Park in Canada, just north of Glacier, to paint the area around the newly constructed Princes of Wales Hotel (1927). In 1929 the Ferys moved to Orcas Island, Washington northwest of Seattle to be closer to family. John was working out of a studio next to the home of his daughter Fiametta and her husband, F. Carl Lange, when a fire destroyed the studio and all its contents. Many of his paintings that he was finishing for the Great Northern were destroyed, much to the consternation of the railway. The stock market crash and subsequent Depression made Fery's work prospects grim. To make matters worse, Louis Hill stepped down as chairman of the board of the Great Northern. The artist's biggest supporter was now gone. From 1925 to 1930, Fery completed approximately seventy-five paintings for the railway. It would be his last major commission. John kept a studio in Everett, Washington until his death on September 10, 1934. John Fery's art has been featured in many exhibitions and catalogs over the years including: Milwaukee Public Library (1974); Boise Art Gallery (1975); the Iron Horse exhibition and catalog at the Minnesota Museum of Art (1976); The Burlington Northern Collection catalog (1982); Mountain Majesty: The Art of John Fery catalog and exhibition sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. William P. Healey, and Mr. and Mrs. John B. Fery held at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, Jackson Hole, Wyoming (1998), C.M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, Montana (1998), and Boise Art Museum, Idaho (1999); John Fery: Artist of the Rockies, catalog and exhibition at the Hockaday Museum in Kalispell (2010); and Painting the Wilderness: John Fery and Contemporaries exhibition at the Wildling Museum in Solvang, California near Santa Barbara (2014), among others.
8 5/8" by 9 3/4". Title is Fall in California. John Fery (1859 - 1934) was active/lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana / Hungary. John Fery is known for Western panoramic landscape painting, cycloramas, promotional painting. Johann Nepomuk Levy--John Fery's name before he Americanized it--was born in Strasswalchen, Austria on March 25, 1859 to Hungarians Jahn and Mary Levy. Jahn was temporarily working for the railroad but soon returned to his wife's prosperous family farm near Pressburg, Hungary. Johann's idyllic childhood filled with painting, hunting, and hiking came to an end in his teenage years when both parents died unexpectedly. An inheritance allowed him to attend the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts where he studied many art styles including Realism, Romanticism, and Impressionism. Further formal training was obtained at the prestigious Munich Royal Academy of Fine Arts and the Dusseldorf Academy. As did many other European artists, Johann immigrated to the United States to seek the opportunities that the "American Dream" promised. A short time after his arrival in 1883, the young artist changed his name to John Fery. He soon found work in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, "the German Athens," where a number of German immigrant artists were hired to work on giant panorama paintings. Fery along with others was assigned to paint the landscape for the cyclorama Battle of Missionary Ridge (1883-1884). Many of these works were hundreds of feet long and weighed several tons. They traveled by train to cities all over the country captivating adoring audiences. With a new name and career, Fery headed back to Europe in 1884 to marry Parisian Mary Rose Kraemer (1862-1930). After living near Lake Ammersee outside Munich where their first child, daughter Fiametta was born, the couple headed back to the United States and explored the Hudson River Valley in eastern New York. This gave him an opportunity to study the works of Bierstadt, Hill, and Moran, among others. In 1890 they relocated to booming Duluth, Minnesota to work on a mural for the Fitger Brewing Company. It was there that Louis Hill first saw Fery's work. But Fery dreamed of exploring the Rockies, and in 1891 he rode the Northern Pacific Railway to Yellowstone National Park and eventually all the way to Seattle. During the trip, he sketched, painted, and photographed the awe inspiring beauty of the American West. However, two years later a depression hit America which made the prospects for living off an artist's income impossible. Showing "Yankee ingenuity," in 1893 and 1895 Fery morphed into a hunting guide and toured groups of wealthy Europeans throughout the West. Louis Hill noted from afar the rising fame of Fery who was considered an outstanding landscape artist with the physicality to hike, climb, and camp in formidable terrain. As the economy improved, Fery found steady work back in Milwaukee, a setting where the family felt most comfortable. Through the tireless efforts of George Bird Grinnell (1849-1938) and others, The "Alps of North America" in northwestern Montana was designated as Glacier National Park in 1910. Louis W. Hill became obsessed with developing the park into a premiere world destination, which could be conveniently accessed by his Great Northern Railway. Fery was given the daunting task of producing hundreds of large paintings from 1910 to 1913 that could be distributed throughout America and around the world to attract tourists to the park. His work found its way to the walls of train depots, hotels, ships, travel agencies, colleges, and other institutions. It seemed Fery's art was everywhere. In addition, Fery's paintings were found in the chalets and lodges that the Great Northern built mainly between 1910 and 1915. Although he was paid less than forty dollars a painting, Fery was almost maniacal in his work. He created a new painting every few days. Early on in their time in Glacier, the Fery family was neighbors of Charlie and Nancy Russell (1878-1940) who had a summer retreat, Bull Head Lodge, on Lake McDonald in western Glacier National Park. A number of Fery paintings survive that were painted near Bull Head Lodge. Moving on, in 1915 John Fery traveled to San Francisco to take in the Panama-Pacific International Exposition where artist's works from all over the world--including a number of Fery's Glacier Park oils--were on display. Louis Hill who had a vacation home south of the Bay area helped Fery obtain commissions from the Southern Pacific Railway. The work took him to Yosemite National Park; Lake Tahoe; Central and Southern California; and Arizona. In 1916 Fery headed to Portland, Oregon where he completed a large mural for Charles "Sam" Jackson (1860-1924), owner of the Oregon Journal, in the Jackson Tower building in downtown Portland. Fery also painted landscapes of the Oregon Coast, Columbia River, and Cascade Mountains. Later in 1916 John and Mary Fery moved to Spokane to be closer to family since both son Carl and daughter Lucienne were living in eastern Washington State. Frequent trips were made to northern and southern Idaho to paint the magnificent lakes and mountains of the area. In time, Lucienne moved with her husband to Salt Lake City, and eventually they were followed there by her parents. John Fery had his art displayed in several local art stores while he ventured to the Southern Utah canyon country of Zion and Bryce to capture their magnificence on canvas. By 1923 the Ferys were living back in Milwaukee. John would soon turn sixty-five years old. In 1925 Louis Hill once again called on his favorite landscape artist to return to Glacier. Hill went into high gear promoting the park with an array of artists including Oliver Grover (1861-1927), Elsa Jemne (1888-1974), Kathryn Leighton (1875-1952), Adolph Heinze (1887-1958), Joe Scheuerle (1873-1948), and Winold Reiss (1888-1953). Fery's agreement with the Great Northern Railway was similar to the original one way back in 1910. He would be paid $200 every month to produce four to six canvases. Especially important to Hill was sending Fery to Wateron Lakes National Park in Canada, just north of Glacier, to paint the area around the newly constructed Princes of Wales Hotel (1927). In 1929 the Ferys moved to Orcas Island, Washington northwest of Seattle to be closer to family. John was working out of a studio next to the home of his daughter Fiametta and her husband, F. Carl Lange, when a fire destroyed the studio and all its contents. Many of his paintings that he was finishing for the Great Northern were destroyed, much to the consternation of the railway. The stock market crash and subsequent Depression made Fery's work prospects grim. To make matters worse, Louis Hill stepped down as chairman of the board of the Great Northern. The artist's biggest supporter was now gone. From 1925 to 1930, Fery completed approximately seventy-five paintings for the railway. It would be his last major commission. John kept a studio in Everett, Washington until his death on September 10, 1934. John Fery's art has been featured in many exhibitions and catalogs over the years including: Milwaukee Public Library (1974); Boise Art Gallery (1975); the Iron Horse exhibition and catalog at the Minnesota Museum of Art (1976); The Burlington Northern Collection catalog (1982); Mountain Majesty: The Art of John Fery catalog and exhibition sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. William P. Healey, and Mr. and Mrs. John B. Fery held at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, Jackson Hole, Wyoming (1998), C.M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, Montana (1998), and Boise Art Museum, Idaho (1999); John Fery: Artist of the Rockies, catalog and exhibition at the Hockaday Museum in Kalispell (2010); and Painting the Wilderness: John Fery and Contemporaries exhibition at the Wildling Museum in Solvang, California near Santa Barbara (2014), among others.
