38 Facts About Richard Gruelle

Richard Buckner Gruelle was an American Impressionist painter, illustrator, and author, who is best known as one of the five Hoosier Group artists.

Richard Gruelle grew up in Arcola, Illinois, apprenticed as a house and sign painter, and established his first studio in Decatur, Illinois, where he began by painting portraits and domestic scenes before turning to landscapes.

Richard Gruelle relocated to Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1882 to pursue a career as a full-time landscape painter.

Richard Gruelle made extended sketching trips to the East Coast of the United States.

Richard Gruelle was a member of several arts organizations, including the Art Association of Indianapolis, the New Canaan Society of Artists, the Society of Western Artists, and the Knockers, an East Coast art group.

Richard Buckner Gruelle was born in Cynthiana, Kentucky, on February 22,1851, to John Beauchamps Gruelle, a tanner, and Prudence Gruelle.

Richard Gruelle was among the youngest of the family's eleven children.

In 1857 six-year-old Richard Gruelle settled with his family in Arcola, Douglas County, Illinois.

Richard Gruelle wanted to be an artist from an early age, a talent that his mother encouraged, but his family could not afford to send him to art school.

In 1884, around the age twelve or thirteen, Richard Gruelle left school and apprenticed himself to a local house and sign painter, where he learned to mix paints.

Richard Gruelle later worked as a surveyor of railroads before moving to Decatur, Illinois, to establish an art studio.

Richard Gruelle married Alice Benton while he was living in Decatur, Illinois.

In 1905, seeking greater opportunities for his family, Richard Gruelle closed his Indianapolis studio, rented out the Tacoma Avenue home, and moved his wife and two youngest children to New York City.

Richard Gruelle continued to paint in Indianapolis until the family relocated to Connecticut in 1910.

Justin Richard Gruelle is best known for fourteen murals he painted for the Works Progress Administration, and pavilion murals he painted for the 1939 New York World's Fair.

Richard Gruelle later performed in vaudeville theaters under the stage name of Prudence Gru, and married Albert Matzke, an illustrator and watercolorist.

Richard Gruelle began his professional career as an artist in Decatur, Illinois, where he established his first studio, but the self-taught painter briefly lived and worked in Ohio, and Florida, before establishing himself in Indiana in 1882.

Richard Gruelle became a full-time artist, achieving fame as a member of the Hoosier Group of painters.

Richard Gruelle lived and maintained a studio in New York City from 1905 to 1907, before returning to his home in Indianapolis.

Richard Gruelle opened his first studio in Decatur, Illinois, specializing in portraiture, but he painted landscapes and taught painting.

In 1882 thirty-one-year-old Richard Gruelle moved his family to Indianapolis, Indiana, and established himself as a full-time artist.

Richard Gruelle enjoyed music, in addition to art, and learned to play the piano.

Richard Gruelle was considered an "artistic jack-of-all-trades," but he focused on painting landscapes in oils and watercolor.

From his home base in Indianapolis, Richard Gruelle often traveled to the East Coast, making extended sketching trips to Washington, DC; Baltimore, Maryland; and Gloucester, Massachusetts.

That same year, Herbert Hess, an Indianapolis art patron, invited Richard Gruelle to come to Washington, DC, to paint the US Capitol.

Richard Gruelle spent several subsequent seasons in the 1890s painting and exhibiting his work in the Washington, DC, area.

Richard Gruelle later made annual trips to paint at Cape Ann, Massachusetts, spending six weeks to two months each summer sketching and painting in the area.

In 1892 Richard Gruelle was invited to view the private art collection of Baltimore industrialist William Thompson Walters at his Maryland home.

Richard Gruelle agreed to the project in 1893, and spent about a year cataloging the collection before completing the manuscript in 1894.

Richard Gruelle wrote subsequent articles for Modern Art magazine and the Indianapolis News.

Richard Gruelle continued to paint in Connecticut, focusing on what he saw in nature, especially seascapes.

In July 1912 Richard Gruelle suffered a paralyzing stroke, which affected the right side of his body, and left him unable to paint.

Richard Gruelle hoped to recover and resume painting, but his health continued to deteriorate.

Richard Gruelle died in Indianapolis, Indiana, on November 8,1914, while visiting family members.

Richard Gruelle's remains are interred at Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis.

Richard Gruelle exhibited at the Society of Western Artists annual shows and in 1904 at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition at Saint Louis, Missouri.

Richard Gruelle preferred one-man shows held in Indianapolis, Indiana, and in New Canaan, Connecticut.

Richard Gruelle was a member of several arts organizations, including the Art Association of Indianapolis, the New Canaan Society of Artists, the Society of Western Artists, and the Knockers, an East Coast art group that later became the Silvermine Guild of Artists and Art School.