By Laura McCormick
Greenwich abounds with distinctive and historic homes. Many have been owned by captains of industry, celebrities, entrepreneurs, sports legends and politicians drawn to our proximity to New York and the lush landscapes on the Sound. Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Havemeyer, Gimbel and more recently Presidents Bush and Trump, Tommy Hilfiger and Mel Gibson are among just a few.
A relatively modest neo-classical house on Round Hill Rd. is not often associated with the homes of this illustrious group, yet it is among the most interesting in town. Two artistic giants called it home. Muppets founder Jim Henson and his family lived there from 1964 – 1971 in the early years of his budding entertainment empire. Henson and his wife and children, multiple dogs and cats infused the house with creativity, joy and artistic expression.
At the top of the 19th century a founder of American Impressionism and a towering figure in American Art resided there with his family. John Henry Twachtman was initially drawn to Greenwich to escape hot New York summers and teach and paint on the site of what is now the Historical Society’s campus. Through his presence and that of Impressionist contemporaries, such as Childe Hassam and J. Alden Weir, Cos Cob became a cradle of American Impressionism.
Twachtman’s commercial success enabled him to purchase the Round Hill home which, at the time, was in a neighborhood known as Hangroot. The hilly area populated by several African American families, whose ancestors were once enslaved, was likely named for the tangled roots of trees that surrounded its rock formations.
The alterations he made to the dwelling resulted in a cozy New England cottage with stone walls and terraces nestled into the landscape. It was an ideal backdrop for raising his family and fueling his artistic passions.
The house and surrounding property with a twisting brook and waterfall was the subject of many of Twachtman’s best-known works, earning him a reputation as the most original of the leading American Impressionists. Some critics compared him to French Impressionist Claude Monet for the distinctive ways he captured landscapes. Today Twachtman is regarded as among the most innovative American artists of the late-19th century. His paintings are present in many leading museums and art centers, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Now through January 22nd, 18 of Twachtman’s works will be on view at the Greenwich Historical Society. ‘Life and Art: The Greenwich Paintings of John Henry Twachtman’ is one of the most important and ambitious exhibitions in the Historical Society’s 90-year history.
According to Maggie Dimock, curator of exhibitions and collections for the Historical Society, viewers have an opportunity to enter Twachtman’s world as he balanced the needs of his growing family with his desire to shape his environment to align with his artistic vision. “Capturing his home from various perspectives over the years gave Twachtman a means of self-reflection. His paintings prompt us to consider the ways an artist relates to their subject and consider how our own homes reveal a part of who we are.”
The Round Hill home remains in much the same state as when attorney and current owner John Nelson purchased it from Jim Henson some 50 years ago. In conducting a tour of the property for descendants of the Twachtman family in town for the exhibition opening, Nelson was ebullient. His feelings for the home ensure the love affair that Twachtman and the Hensons had for it endures.
Special events focused on Twachtman’s Greenwich years:
A series of workshops, tours and lectures will be hosted at the Historical Society during the duration of the exhibition. Upcoming events include:
• Coffee with the Curator
November 10, 10:30 am – 12 pm
Twachtman scholar and show curator Lisa N. Peters will lead an in-depth tour of the artworks in the exhibition, to be followed by coffee and light refreshments.
• Retracing Twachtman’s Footsteps: Painting En Plein Air in Cos Cob with Dimitri Wright
November 12, 10 am – 3 pm
Master painter Dimitri Wright will lead a day of outdoor painting in the tradition of Twachtman and other artists of the Cos Cob Art Colony.
• Twachtman and Monet: Impressionist Cross Currents in the 1890s
November 15, 6 pm – 7 pm
Lisa Peters will point to the parallels between Twachtman and Claude Monet in this illustrated lecture.
For more information and to register for these events: https://greenwichhistory.org/twachtman-events/
for more information about the exhibition: https://greenwichhistory.org/twachtman/
