Judith Godwin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Judith Godwin
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New York artists Kate Cordsen and Judith Godwin
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| Born | February 5, 1930 |
| Died | May 29, 2021 (aged 91) |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Art Students League of New York |
| Alma mater | Mary Baldwin College, Richmond Professional Institute |
| Known for | Painting |
| Movement | Abstract Expressionism |
Judith Godwin (born February 5, 1930 – died May 29, 2021) was an American painter. She was known for her unique style of abstract painting, which is part of a movement called Abstract Expressionism.
Contents
Early Life and Learning
Judith Godwin was born in Suffolk, Virginia, in 1930. Her father loved architecture and gardening. This helped Judith feel inspired to become a painter from a young age.
She went to Mary Baldwin College for two years starting in 1948. There, she met the famous dancer Martha Graham in 1950. Judith then moved to Richmond Professional Institute (RPI), which is now Virginia Commonwealth University. She finished her degree there in 1952.
While at RPI, she studied with teachers like Maurice Bond and Theresa Pollak. There was a rule that women had to wear skirts in the cafeteria. One day, Judith wore jeans after rushing from an art class. She was reported, but the dean, Margaret Johnson, met with her and changed the rule! This allowed women to wear jeans.
Judith also studied at the Art Students League of New York. Here, she learned from artists like Will Barnet and Harry Sternberg. She also attended the Hans Hofmann School of Fine Arts. There, she met many famous artists such as Jackson Pollock, Franz Kline, and Willem de Kooning. She lived in Greenwich Village, a neighborhood in New York City.
Becoming a Professional Artist
Judith Godwin had her first art show in 1950 in Suffolk, Virginia. Her college teacher, Jewett Campbell, suggested she move to New York City. So, in 1953, she moved there to study more at the Art Students League of New York. She learned a lot from Hans Hofmann, who greatly influenced her art.
Godwin said that Hofmann made her feel "completely free" to paint however she wanted. He also helped her try new colors and techniques. Hofmann encouraged her to move away from cubism and explore abstract expressionism.
In 1958, another artist named James Brooks invited her to show her work at the Stable Gallery. Later, in the late 1950s, she met Betty Parsons, who invited Judith to join her new gallery, Section Eleven. Judith became the youngest woman to ever show her art there!
At Betty Parsons' show, Judith met James Johnson Sweeney, who was the director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. He liked her work and asked her to send him some paintings. He received Abstraction 1954 and Abstraction #15. Even though he liked them, they weren't added to the Guggenheim Collection at that time.
Judith Godwin even shared a studio with Franz Kline, another well-known artist. She also met other important male artists like Mark Rothko.
It was very special for Judith to succeed in Abstract Expressionism during the mid-20th century. This art movement was mostly known for male artists like Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning. In 1981, Godwin mentioned how competitive the art world had become. She said that when she first moved to New York in the early 1950s, there were only a few thousand painters. By 1981, there were tens of thousands!
In the 1980s, Judith Godwin had three art studios. One was in a barn in Connecticut, one in Greenwich Village, New York City, and another in Suffolk, Virginia. In 1999, she was part of a discussion about Hans Hofmann at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
Art Style and Inspiration
Judith Godwin is known as a second-generation abstract expressionist. This means she was part of the next group of artists in this style. She painted by expressing her feelings and experiences through her art. She used colors and brushstrokes to show her emotions.
Her art was inspired by nature, gardening, modern dance, and Zen philosophy. Her love for the environment often appeared in her paintings. These "landscapes" in her art often showed her inner feelings, which sometimes mirrored what was happening in nature.
Her early love for gardening came from helping her father as a child. After moving to New York, she became friends with Martha Graham, the famous dancer. Graham's performances greatly influenced Godwin. Judith often put the dancer's strong, moving gestures into her paintings.
About one of her large paintings, The Ring, Godwin said she often starts by imagining shapes and spaces in nature. Then, she turns these ideas and feelings into colors on the canvas. She trusted her feelings when choosing colors and how to apply them. Another one of her paintings is called Ode to Martha Graham, showing her admiration for the dancer.
When she first started, Godwin used a bold, strong style. This helped her stand up to male art critics who didn't always value women's art. Over time, her colors changed, first becoming softer, then bright again.
In the 1990s, Godwin began adding small objects to her canvases. She said she wanted to add "something to the surfaces of my paintings" without making them stand out too much.
In 1978, Judith Godwin said that painting was "an act of freedom" for her as a woman. She believed that art from a woman's experience could be powerful for everyone. She saw her paintings as "personal statements" and "extensions of myself." She would take an emotion or a question and paint it.
Awards and Recognition
Judith Godwin received several important awards and honors:
- 1989: Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts from Virginia Commonwealth University.
- 1989: Professional Achievement Alumni Award from Virginia Commonwealth University.
- 2002: Career achievement award from Mary Baldwin College.
- 2002: Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree from Mary Baldwin College.
Personal Life
Judith Godwin's family home in Suffolk, Virginia, was called "Whitehall." Her family history goes back to the very first settlers in the Virginia Colony. Her mother, Judith Brewer Godwin, was involved in preserving old Virginia buildings and was president of the Garden Club of Virginia. Her father, Frank Whitney Godwin, was a dentist and a veteran of World War I. He was also an amateur architect.
Judith Godwin was a cousin of Virginia Governor Mills E. Godwin, Jr..
In the 1950s, she adopted the Zen idea of living simply. She lived in a small apartment in Greenwich Village with few possessions. During the 1950s and 1960s, she worked on restoring houses and learned skills like plastering and masonry. She also did some interior design and fabric design. In 1963, Godwin bought a brownstone house in Greenwich Village that used to belong to Franz Kline.
In the 1980s, she protested against an annual furriers convention in New York because she cared about animals.
Art in Collections
Judith Godwin's artwork can be found in many important museums and collections around the world. Here are some of them:
- Museum of Modern Art (New York)
- Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York)
- Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
- National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
- Chicago Art Institute
- Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
- Utah Museum of Fine Arts
- Yale University Art Gallery
- Milwaukee Art Center
- National Museum of Art, Osaka, Japan
- National Museum of Wales, Cardiff, South Wales
- National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC
- North Carolina Museum of Art
- Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey
- Amarillo Museum of Art, Amarillo, TX
- Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville, South Carolina
- The Johnson Collection, Spartanburg, South Carolina
- Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
- Gannett Center, Columbia University, NY
- Mary Baldwin College, Staunton, VA
- Mount Holyoke College Art Museum, Mount Holyoke, MA
- Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE
- Ulrich Museum, Wichita State University, Wichita, KS
- University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
- Weatherspoon Art Gallery, University of North Carolina, Greensboro, NC
- Vassar College Museum, Poughkeepsie, NY
- Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA
- General Electric Company, New York
- The Hyde Collection, Glenn Falls, New York
- JPMorgan Chase, New York
- McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, Texas
- Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Texas
- Sovran Bank, Richmond, Virginia
- Suffolk Museum of Art, Virginia
- United States Navy Y.M.C.A., Norfolk, Virginia
- United Virginia Bank, Richmond, Virginia
Exhibitions and Shows
Judith Godwin's art has been shown in many exhibitions over the years. Here are some of the places where her work has been displayed:
- 1950: Mountcastle's, Suffolk, VA
- 1951: Norfolk Museum of Arts and Sciences, Norfolk, VA
- 1952: Abingdon Square Painters, New York City
- 1953: Group show, Provincetown Art Association
- 1954: "An Environment of Expression", Virginia Beach, VA
- 1958: Stable Gallery Invitational Show, New York City
- 1958-1960: Group and Solo Shows at Betty Parsons, Section Eleven, New York City
- 1977-1981: Solo and Group Shows at Ingber Gallery, New York City
- 1978: Solo Show, Mary Baldwin College, Staunton, VA
- 1984: Solo Show, Northern Michigan University, Marquette
- 1986: Retrospective Solo Show (a show looking back at her work), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA
- 1989: Solo Show, Danville Museum, Danville, VA
- 1992: Solo Show, Marisa del Re Gallery, NY
- 1995-1996: Solo Show, Amarillo Museum of Art, Amarillo, TX
- 2001: Solo Show, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ
- 2008: Solo Show, McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, TX
- 2016-2017: Group Show, "Women of Abstract Expressionism" at Denver Art Museum, Mint Museum, and Palm Springs Art Museum.
- 2019: "Judith Godwin: An Act of Freedom," Berry Campbell, New York
