Dorothy Block

Dorothy Block (1904–November 5, 1984) was an American artist known for her paintings and visual arts.

Dorothy Block
Born1904
Brooklyn, New York
DiedNovember 5, 1984
NationalityAmerican
Known forPainting
SpouseRobert Dublirer

She was educated by her uncle, Louis Keila, at the Mary Baldwin College, and at the Art Students League of New York. She taught at the Art Students League and participated in the Federal Art Project, including writing a memoir about her experience as an artist in the early 20th century.

Early life and education

She was born in 1904 in Brooklyn, New York[1] to Joseph and Rebecca Block, who had both immigrated to the United States in 1888 and 1889, respectively, from Russia and together they ran an import business. They had three daughters, Ethel, Dorothy, and Lilian.[2] Joseph Block had a financial interest and was vice president and general manager of the Franco Electric Company until 1921.[3][lower-alpha 1] He had a number of patents for decorative electric devices.[4][5][6] In 1920, the family lived in the Hotel Touraine in Brooklyn and Joseph was an executive with Electrical Corporation.[7][8]

Dorothy Block, Triptych: Jazz

Dorothy Josephine and Lilian Jeanette,[9] who would both become artists,[10] attended Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Virginia. Both sisters were members of the Sky High Club.[9][lower-alpha 2] Dorothy was a member of the school's art club.[12] Dorothy and Lilian studied art under their maternal uncle, painter and sculptor Louis Keila.[1][13] Dorothy studied under William von Schlegell[1] at the Art Students League of New York, which she attended between 1920 and 1930.[14][15] Block was a friend and correspondent of Brooklyn painter and printmaker Lena Gurr, who attended the Art Students League from 1920 to 1922.[16]

Midlife and career

She worked at Art Students League of New York and as part of the Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project,[1][15] including having written Reminiscences of an Artist about the Federal Art Project.[17]

Blocked died on November 5, 1984, in her house.[10] Her collected papers are stored in the Smithsonian Institution's Archives of American Art.[15] The Frick Art Reference Library also has a collection of archival information about her works and career, assembled by the Museum of Modern Art.[18]

Personal life

Her sister[10] and a student of Dorothy Blocks was artist, Lillian Block MacKendrick (1906–1987).[13]

Block was married to Robert Dublirer.[19] She had a daughter, Dr. Johanna C. Fisher of Huntington Beach, New York[10] who was the step-daughter of Robert Dublirer.[19] She was a friend of fellow artists Aristodimos Kaldis and Jacob Lawrence.[15]

Works
  • Beach Scene, painting[20]
  • Isola, painting[21]
  • No title, sculpture[22]
  • Summer Interior, number 1, painting[23]
  • Terrace on Via Pontano, circa 1958, painting[24]
  • Triptych: Jazz, painting[25]
  • Vacation Scene, painting[26]
  • Vesuviana, circa 1955, painting[27]
  • View from a Window, painting[28]
  • The Wanderers in Sheridan Square, painting[29]

Notes
  1. In 1922, Joseph Block's address was 1001 Ocean Avenue in Brooklyn.[3]
  2. Dorothy and Lilian lived at 1001 Ocean Avenue in Brooklyn, New York.[11]

References
  1. New York City WPA Art: Then 1934-1943 and ... Now 1960-1977. NYC WPA Artists. 1977.
  2. "Dorothy Block, Brooklyn Ward 24, Kings, New York, New York", Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910. Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29., Washington, D.C.: National Archives
  3. "Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce Bulletin (Volume 3, Number 45, July 22, 1922): Block Seeks New Connections". Brooklyn. July 22, 1922. p. 5.
  4. "Electrical decorative illuminating device US 1783277 A". Google patents. December 2, 1930. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  5. "Decorative illuminating device US 1869321 A". Google patents. July 26, 1932. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  6. "Electric display device US 1824942 A". Google patents. September 29, 1931. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  7. "Dorothy Block, Brooklyn, Kings, New York, New York", Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920. Records of the Bureau of the Census., Washington, D.C.: National Archives
  8. "Marriage announcement: Dr. Daniel Leonard Golann and Ethel Block" (PDF). New York Times. May 10, 1920. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  9. "Mary Baldwin College Bluestocking". 1923. pp. 81, 147. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  10. "Block, Dorothy". New York Times. November 11, 1984.
  11. "Mary Baldwin College Bluestocking". 1923. p. 147. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  12. "Mary Baldwin College Bluestocking". 1923. p. 63. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  13. Jules Heller; Nancy G. Heller (19 December 2013). North American Women Artists of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical Dictionary. Taylor & Francis. p. 2161. ISBN 978-1-135-63889-4.
  14. "Prominent Former Students of Art Students League". Art Students League of New York. Archived from the original on 2015-03-13. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  15. "Dorothy Block papers, 1920-1985". Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  16. "Lena Gurr Papers". Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  17. Archives of American Art (1995). Government and art: a guide to sources in the Archives of American Art. The Archives. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-880193-07-5.
  18. Dorothy Block, Museum of Modern Art. Dorothy Block : artist file : study photographs and reproductions of works of art with accompanying documentation 1930?-1990. New York, New York: Museum of Modern Art. OCLC 855492990. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  19. "Death notice: Robert Dublirer". New York Times. December 17, 2003. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  20. "Beach Scene". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  21. "Isola". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  22. "No title, sculpture". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  23. "Summer Interior, number 1". Blouin Art Info. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  24. "Terrace on Via Pontano". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  25. "Triptych: Jazz". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  26. "Vacation Scene". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  27. "Vesuviana". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  28. "View from a Window". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  29. "The Wanderers in Sheridan Square". Smithsonian Institution Research Information System. Retrieved March 1, 2015.

Further reading
  • American Federation of Arts; R.R. Bowker Company (1973). Who's who in American art, 1973: a biographical directory. Jaques Cattell Press/R.R. Bowker. ISBN 978-0-8352-0611-2.
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