Fine Art, Then and Now

Ben Berlin  1887-1939

In the years of the Great Depression when times were hard, they were doubly hard for artists who generally struggled in even the best of times to earn a living in their field.

Reginald and Nora Morgan lived in Salisbury from 1930-1970 in a home on West Salisbury Road which now is the residence of Kenneth and Nancy Mailloux.  They were part of a circle of friends that included the writer Sadakichi Hartman and artists from the early California school of modernist painters in Los Angeles. Their group was referred to as Sargent Circle after its location in the hills overlooking Pasadena and LA. This is very close to the current Dodger Stadium.

How exactly this relationship began is unknown at this time but it was a strong friendship for many years. One conjecture is that the connection was made in New York City as the Morgans were either from Connecticut or New York City. Research on the Morgans is ongoing.

One friend and painter, struggling both in life and in his career during the Depression, was Ben Berlin.  He spent time on the Morgan farm working for his keep as well as improving his health and creating art. Below is his cubist portrait of Sadakichi Hartman which was cut and divided for transport. It is done in charcoal on homosote which was the equivalent of today’s wallboard. The panel on the right was damaged by water seeping into the barn.

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Omer T. Lassonde   (1903-1980)

Born in 1903 at Concord, NH of French-Canadian stock, Omer Thomas Lassonde was schooled at Manchester and Philadelphia and painted at Monhegan and Gloucester with some of the great colorists of the 1920s. He lived in Salisbury 1967-1972

                                   

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Carlton Allen

Carlton Allen was a well known photographer who lived in Salisbury beginning in the 1930’s.  According to an interview between Paul Shaw and Anna DeAngelis in 1992, she recalls that he and his wife Samantha Allen purchased her mother’s home in West Salisbury. She remembers that he used to make beautiful postcards of the scenic views of the area and had quite a business distributing them from Concord, NH. His name can be found on existing vintage New Hampshire postcards.  Any information about the photography of Carleton Allen would be appreciated.

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RECENT PAINTED or PRINT WORKS         Alphabetized by artists name:

Barbara Carr   woodcut prints, oil & watercolor painting, current resident

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 Rosemarie Cravens  oil & watercolor painting, current resident

 

 

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 Roger Heath   oil painting, current resident

 

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Karen Holman resident from 1995-2003, currently resides in Barrington NH

While a resident of Salisbury, Karen was and continues to be a prolific fine artist and illustrator.