GUY WIGGINS
American (1883 – 1962)
Guy Wiggins was an important American impressionist painter. Among his most iconic paintings are those featuring urban winter scenes and New York City’s streets. Deeply influenced by the French Impressionists, the popularity of his work demonstrated the enduring importance of the style in the United States in the early 20th century.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Wiggins was the son of the renowned Barbizon School painter Carleton Wiggins. Around 1900, he began to pursue architecture at Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, then later entered the National Academy of Design to study with William Merritt Chase and Robert Henri. He made numerous travels abroad, sketching and painting around France. In 1912, the Metropolitan Museum of Art purchased the artist’s Metropolitan Tower, making him one of the youngest artists to be represented in the collection. In 1937 Wiggins moved to Essex, Connecticut and founded the Guy Wiggins Art School. During the following years, in addition to teaching, he traveled widely throughout the United States and painted scenes of Montana, Massachusetts and Connecticut.
Collectors of Wiggins’ work include the Art Institute of Chicago, the Brooklyn Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the National Gallery of Art.
