Jeremiah Goodman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jeremiah Goodman
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Jeremiah Goodman in Manhattan, 1956
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| Born | October 22, 1922 Buffalo, New York, U.S.
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| Died | September 7, 2017 (aged 94) New York City, New York, U.S.
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| Nationality | American |
| Education | The New School, Fashion Institute of Technology |
| Known for | Artist, Interior Illustrator |
Jeremiah Goodman (born October 22, 1922 – died September 7, 2017) was a famous artist. He was known for painting amazing pictures of the inside of buildings. He would capture the feeling of a room, almost like a portrait! Jeremiah painted for many different people, including businesses and private homes. For nearly 20 years, his art was on the covers of Interior Design magazine. He also illustrated books and painted large murals.
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Jeremiah Goodman's Early Life
Jeremiah Goodman was born on October 22, 1922, in Niagara Falls, New York. He was the youngest of five children. His parents had moved to the U.S. from Russia and Poland.
When he was four years old, Jeremiah hurt his right hand. He was given crayons and learned to draw with his left hand. This is how he first became interested in art.
Jeremiah Goodman's Education
In 1930, his family moved to Buffalo, New York. Even though it was during the Great Depression and jobs were hard to find, Jeremiah was able to go to Lafayette High School.
He studied art there, hoping to become a set designer for movies or plays. He finished high school in 1939.
In 1940, when he was 18, Jeremiah moved to New York City. He got a full scholarship to the Franklin School of Professional Art. After graduating, he also studied at Parsons School of Design.
At Parsons, he took classes in interior decoration and commercial illustration. These studies helped him develop his unique artistic style.
Who Influenced Jeremiah Goodman?
Many artists and styles inspired Jeremiah Goodman's work. He admired painters like John Singer Sargent and J.M.W. Turner. He also found inspiration in Japanese ink brush painting.
In 1948, Jeremiah met a British actor named John Gielgud. Gielgud encouraged him to paint "room portraits." This became a big part of Jeremiah's career.
In 1949, he visited the homes of famous fashion designer Jeanne Lanvin in Paris. Lanvin believed that "Art and fashion are one," which also showed in Jeremiah's creative work.
He even said that the book The Secret Garden inspired the design of his own home.
Jeremiah Goodman's Career
Starting His Art Career
Jeremiah's first job in New York was designing window displays while he was still in school. During World War II, he worked as a machinist for a company called Curtiss-Wright.
Designing for Movies and Stores
In 1945, he moved to Los Angeles to work as an illustrator for a set designer. He helped design sets for movies like Gone with the Wind. However, he felt his talents weren't fully used, so he returned to New York City.
Back in Manhattan, he worked as an illustrator and designer. He created window displays for stores like Sachs Quality Stores and McCrory's.
For over 30 years, starting in 1952, he worked for Lord & Taylor department stores. He designed windows, painted murals, and created illustrations for their advertisements and catalogs.
Illustrating for Magazines and Books
Jeremiah's unique painting style, with its special brushwork and splatters, became very popular. It even influenced other architectural illustrators for many years.
In 1949, Jeremiah started illustrating the covers of Interior Design magazine. He continued this work until 1964. During this time, he also created art for other famous magazines like Harper's Bazaar, House & Garden, and Vogue.
He also illustrated several books, including:
- 1964: My Favorite Things: A Personal Guide to Decorating and Entertaining
- 1997: The Illustrated Room: 20th Century Interior Design Rendering
- 2010: The Great Lady Decorators: Lessons from the Women Who Invented Interior Design
Painting Room Portraits
Jeremiah became famous for his "room portraits." He would often sketch rooms on the spot. Sometimes, he would paint them right there. Other times, he would go back to his studio and finish the painting using photos and his memory.
He painted rooms for many famous people in the U.S. and Europe. These included actresses Greta Garbo and Mary Martin, and costume designers Edith Head and Tony Duquette.
In Europe, he painted spaces for artist Pablo Picasso, designer David Nightingale Hicks, and even Wallis, Duchess of Windsor. He also painted the Nymphenburg Palace in Bavaria.
In the U.S., he created drawings or paintings of homes for President Ronald Reagan, fashion designers Carolina Herrera and Bill Blass, and Vogue Editor Diana Vreeland.
Jeremiah Goodman's Own Homes
East Hampton Home
In 1957, Jeremiah bought a carriage house in East Hampton, New York. It was built around a courtyard, where he added a swimming pool. The house had many French doors and windows that looked out onto beautiful gardens.
He designed the inside with a circular staircase, a stucco fireplace, and slate flooring. He filled his home with art, collectibles, antiques, and modern furniture. He created cozy spaces for everyone. Many famous people visited his home, including playwright Edward Albee and actress Mary Martin.
Manhattan Apartment
His apartment and studio in New York City had amazing views of the East River and the Queensborough Bridge. It was a corner apartment in a tall building, with two walls of windows. His New York City home was even featured twice in Architectural Digest magazine.
What People Said About Jeremiah Goodman
Many experts praised Jeremiah Goodman's work. Scott M. Ageloff, an expert in interior design, called him "one of the greatest masters of interior illustration of our time."
Christopher Finch from Architectural Digest said that Jeremiah "conjures up space by combining a deceptively casual perspective... with plays of light and shadow." He also noted that Jeremiah's black-and-white illustrations showed influences from Japanese brush painting.
A book called The Illustrated Room explained that Jeremiah's "room paintings" were like portraits of rooms after they were finished. They were great for preserving the mood of an interior, even if it was changed later.
Awards and Collections
Jeremiah Goodman received a special award from Interior Design magazine in 1987.
His illustrations are kept in important museum collections, including:
- Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, New York, NY
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Exhibitions
In 2017, the Design Fournir Gallery in Los Angeles held a special exhibition of Jeremiah Goodman's work. It showed over 50 of his original paintings from his 70-year career.
Images for kids
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Jeremiah Goodman in Manhattan, 1956
