Francis Sumner Merritt

Francis "Fran" Sumner Merritt (1913–2000) was an American painter, teacher, and arts administrator.[1] He was a co-founder and first director of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts.[2]

Francis Sumner Merritt
Francis Merritt (1937) at the Abbot Academy
Born(1913-04-08)April 8, 1913
Danvers, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedDecember 27, 2000(2000-12-27) (aged 87)
Belfast, Maine, U.S.
Other namesFrancis Merritt, Fran Merritt
EducationVesper George School of Art,
San Diego Academy of Fine Arts,
Massachusetts School of Art,
Yale University
Occupation(s)painter, teacher, arts administrator
Known forfine art

Biography

Francis Sumner Merritt was born on April 8, 1913, in Danvers, Massachusetts.[2] He studied at the Vesper George School of Art, the San Diego Academy of Fine Arts, the Massachusetts School of Art, and at Yale University.[3]

Merritt taught at Abbot Academy, Cranbrook Academy of Art, and the Flint Institute of Arts (from 1947 to 1951).[3] In 1950, the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts was founded in Liberty, Maine and Merritt served as the school's first director.[3][4] His wife Pricilla worked on the arts administration for the school.[4] For many years they lived at Centennial House, just outside the town of Deer Isle, Maine.[5]

Merritt died on December 27, 2000, in Belfast, Maine.[2] His work is included in the museum collections at the National Gallery of Art,[6] and the Hudson Museum.[7]

References
  1. "Merritt, Francis Sumner, 1913-2000". The Library of Congress, LC Linked Data Service. Retrieved 2021-11-19.
  2. "Francis Merritt, 87, Whose School Broadened the Study of Crafts". The New York Times. 2001-01-08. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-11-19.
  3. "Oral history interview with Francis Sumner Merritt, 1979 May 25-June 25". Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2021-11-22.
  4. Fogler, Raymond H. (2016). "Haystack Mountain School of Crafts Records, 1950-2005". University of Maine Special Collections Library.
  5. Tree, Christina; English, Nancy (2012-06-04). Explorer's Guide Maine (Sixteenth Edition) (Explorer's Complete). Countryman Press. ISBN 978-0-88150-964-9.
  6. "Francis Merritt". www.nga.gov. Retrieved 2021-11-22.
  7. "Francis Merritt". Hudson Museum.


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