Wood Allen Ryder (November 10, 1884 – February 17, 1960), was an American artist, curator, and art professor.[1] He has been credited as being, "largely responsible for the United States early interest in avant garde art".[2]

Worth Ryder
Born
Woodworth Allen Ryder

(1884-11-10)November 10, 1884
DiedFebruary 17, 1960(1960-02-17) (aged 75)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materUniversity of California, Berkeley,
Art Students League of New York,
Academy of Fine Arts, Munich
Known forArt
SpouseCornelia Meta Breckenfeld
Children1

Life

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Worth Allen Ryder was born November 10, 1884, in Kirkwood, Illinois.[3] He was one of three children.[4] His father Morgan L. Ryder was a former trustee of the town of Berkeley and worked for the Southern Pacific freight trains.[5][4] Ryder arrived in Berkeley, California as a young child and graduated from Berkeley High School in 1903.[2] He studied at the University of California, Berkeley, at the Art Students League of New York, from 1906 to 1908 and the Royal Bavarian Academy in Munich (now called the Academy of Fine Arts, Munich).[6][3][7]

In 1911, he returned to California, where he taught at the California School of Arts and Crafts (now called the California College of the Arts) until 1918. He also served as curator of the Oakland Art Gallery from 1916 to 1918.

From 1921 to 1927, Ryder continued his art studies in Germany, France, and Italy.[7] One of his teachers was Hans Hofmann.[8] He was instrumental in bringing Hans Hofmann to the United States.[8] It was in the United States where Hofmann had his first solo show at the California Palace of the Legion of Honor and Hoffman taught in the 1930 and 1931 summer sessions at University of California, Berkeley.[1]

Ryder taught art at the University of California, Berkeley from 1926 until his retirement in 1955.[3] Among Ryder's pupils were artists Dorothy Rieber Joralemon, Robert Boardman Howard, Karl Kasten, James McCray, among others.[2][9][10]

Ryder died from a heart ailment on February 17, 1960, in Berkeley, California.[11][6] He was survived by his wife Cornelia Meta Ryder (née Breckenfeld) and daughter Cornelia Beatrice Ryder.[6]

Legacy

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The Worth Ryder Art Gallery at the University of California, Berkeley, is named for him. Hans Hofmann donated one of his own paintings to the university in memory of his friend and former student, and in 1963 Hofmann gave the university a major collection of his work and seed money toward creation of the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive.

References

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  1. ^ a b "Worth Allen Ryder, Art: Berkeley, 1884-1960, Professor Emeritus". Calisphere. The Regents of The University of California. 2011. Retrieved November 13, 2014.
  2. ^ a b c "Worth Ryder Left A Lasting Impression On Many Hearts". Newspapers.com. Oakland Tribune. February 28, 1960. p. 67. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  3. ^ a b c "Worth Ryder". Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF). 2018-09-21. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  4. ^ a b Southern Pacific Bulletin. Southern Pacific Company. 1924. p. 27.
  5. ^ "Morgan L. Ryder Arrives At Old Home". Newspapers.com. The San Francisco Call. 13 June 1910. p. 8. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  6. ^ a b c "Professor Ryder Funeral Pending". Newspapers.com. Oakland Tribune. February 18, 1960. p. 20. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  7. ^ a b "Worth Ryder's Return to Munich". Newspapers.com. Oakland Tribune. October 26, 1924. p. 54. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  8. ^ a b Winn, Steven (2019-03-26). "Strokes of Genius: Hans Hofmann's Gift to Berkeley". Cal Alumni Association. Retrieved 2020-10-15. Hans Hofmann, the great abstract expressionist painter and teacher, might never have made his indelible imprint on 20th-century American art, first on the West Coast and ultimately across the U.S., had it not been for two summers teaching at UC Berkeley. The invitation came from Worth Ryder, an art department faculty member and former Hofmann student
  9. ^ "Dorothy Rieber Joralemon". Askart.com. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  10. ^ Opitz, Glenn B., ed. (1986). Mantle Fielding's Dictionary of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers. Poughkeepsie, NY: Apollo. ISBN 978-0-938290-04-9.
  11. ^ "Obituaries, Death Elsewhere". Newspapers.com. The Hammond Times. February 21, 1960. p. B-3. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
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