ART AT THE SM&NC
on view through March 19, 2023
overseas. Following the death of her husband Melville in 1949, her physician instructed her to “slow down,” so two years later, the self-taught painter began painting daily. Regensburg’s subjects were the everyday objects that surrounded her, including fresh groceries, antique vases, and patterned tablecloths. She painted every day in the corner of her bedroom in the same chair, choosing casein as her preferred medium as she didn’t care for the smell of turpentine required for working with oils. Despite being labeled a naive painter – a label she abhorred during her lifetime – her paintings define the cultural zeitgeist of her era with a palpable mid-century feel. Featuring crisp outlines, saturated colors, meticulous details, and a flattened perspective that gives little distinction between foreground and background, her compositions are reminiscent of Golden Age Dutch still-lifes, with patterning that echoes her lifelong passion and practice in the fiber arts as an avid knitter, quilter, hooked-rug maker, and needle pointer. Sophy Regensburg ( 1884-1974) Flowers and Fruit Against Pale Green Background ,
What started as a Curator’s pipedream has evolved into the very first museum exhibition celebrating artist Sophy Regensburg’s profound and inspiring 20-year career. While mining the Stamford Museum & Nature Center’s permanent collection, Curator of Collections & Exhibitions Maeve Lawler discovered five of the artist’s core works, which sparked the idea and foundation for a more extensive, dedicated exhibition. Regensburg, who began painting at the age of 67 while living on the Upper East Side in New York City, produced more than 500 works of art over two decades. She was renowned for her vivid still-life scenes depicting objects culled from her everyday world – a pitcher of tulips, a plate of shucked oysters, a slice of cherry pie. Born in 1885 to a prominent New York City family, Sophy Pollak Regensburg studied drawing at The Chase Art School under William Merritt Chase and Robert Henri in her youth. During the war, Sophy was actively involved in support efforts: During WWI, she drove an ambulance in New York City transporting wounded soldiers to the hospital, and during WWII, she knitted socks for soldiers
November 1972 Casein on canvas 16 x 20 inches Collection of the Stamford Museum & Nature Center Gift of Mr. Charles Regensburg, 85.7.1
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