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Frederick Rondel

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Frederick Rondel
Rondel c. 1866–1871
Born1826
Paris, France
DiedNovember 1892
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Resting placePhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
MovementHudson River School

Frederick Rondel (1826 – November 1892) was a French-American landscape painter. Born in Paris, he was tutored in art by Théodore Gudin, a marine painter in King Louis Philippe I's court, before moving to the United States in 1855. In the United States, Rondel exhibited his works and taught painting to a number of pupils, including Winslow Homer and Charles Mielatz. He was a member of the Hudson River School movement and frequently depicted areas such as the Hudson River and the Adirondack Mountains.

Biography

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Rondel was born in Paris, France, in 1826.[1] He was first tutored in art by Théodore Gudin, who served as a marine painter in King Louis Philippe I's court.[1][2] He was subsequently tutored by Auguste Jugelet, who was also a student of Gudin.[1] Rondel moved to the United States in 1855[3] and settled in Boston; there, he painted and produced lithographs.[4] In 1857, his work was exhibited in New York City at the National Academy of Design;[1] Rondel moved to New York near the end of 1859 and became a member of the National Academy in 1861.[1][4] He also taught art; he tutored the well-known landscape painter Winslow Homer for a short time.[5][6] Later, he trained the artists Charles Mielatz[7] and F. Benedict Herzog.[8]

Matthew Vassar's Town Residence

Over the next few years, Rondel moved to various cities while maintaining his studio in New York, including Boston; South Malden, Massachusetts; and Poughkeepsie, New York. He also took extended trips to Europe in 1862 and San Francisco in 1875.[1][4] He moved to Poughkeepsie by January 1862 and began teaching art to female students there, holding the position of professor of painting at the Cottage Hill Seminary.[9] While there, he was commissioned by the merchant Matthew Vassar to paint a series of works depicting three of Vassar's homes, two of which were located in Poughkeepsie.[4][9] He also befriended the painter Caroline Morgan Clowes there, whom he mentored and collaborated with up until the later years of his life.[9]

View of City Island

Rondel returned to New York City in 1868, where he continued to paint and exhibit his works, before relocating to New Rochelle, New York, in 1871.[1][4] By 1892, Rondel had moved to Philadelphia, where he died and was buried in November of that year.[3][9] He was eulogized in the Poughkeepsie Daily Eagle on December 1, with his obituary reporting that "his paintings are held in high repute".[9] Rondel's son, Fredrick Rondel Jr., also became an artist.[10]

Work

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The Meadow, 1855

Rondel was primarily a landscape painter. He was a member of the Hudson River School movement and frequently depicted local areas such as the Hudson River and the Adirondack Mountains.[3][4] Beyond landscapes, Rondel also produced genre paintings, still lifes, portraits, and marine paintings.[3] Rondel's works have been exhibited in, among other museums and galleries, the Mint Museum,[11] the Butler Institute of American Art,[4] and the Corcoran Gallery of Art.[1]

References

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  1. ^ Bird, Michelle. "Théodore Gudin". Fitzwilliam Museum. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d Davies, Thomas (2008). Collecting Stories, 400 Paintings — 400 Stories: A Collection of American Painting. Laynfaroh. p. 67. ISBN 9780975978313.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Wolfe, M. Melissa (1994). "Frederick Rondel". Master Paintings from the Butler Institute of American Art. Butler Institute of American Art. p. 80. ISBN 978-0-8109-3643-0.
  4. ^ Howat, John K. (1972). The Hudson River and Its Painters. Viking Press. p. 137. ISBN 9780670385584.
  5. ^ Davis, Elliot Bostwick (Summer–Autumn 1996). "American Drawing Books and Their Impact on Winslow Homer". Winterthur Portfolio. 31 (2/3). University of Chicago Press: 148. doi:10.1086/496683. JSTOR 1215158.
  6. ^ "Charles Mielatz". American Art News. 17 (35): 6. June 14, 1919. JSTOR 25589494.
  7. ^ "Herzog, Felix Benedict". Who's Who in New York City and State (5th ed.). W. F. Brainard. 1911. p. 460.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Frederick Rondel". Dutchess County Historical Society. May 8, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  9. ^ "Frederick Rondel". National Academy of Design. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  10. ^ "Old Orchard, Newport, RI". Mint Museum. Retrieved May 12, 2025.