Leonard Bahr

Leonard Marion Bahr (May 12, 1905 – July 25, 1990) was an American portrait painter, muralist, illustrator and educator. He worked for many years as a painting professor at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA).

Personal life

Leonard Marion Bahr was born on May 12, 1905, in Maryland.<ref name="VA BIRLS">Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death File. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.</ref><ref>1940 Baltimore, Baltimore City, Maryland census. Roll: T627_1524; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 4-400. United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1940. T627, 4,643 rolls.</ref><ref name="MSA dob/dod">Painters: Leonard Marion Bahr. Template:Webarchive Maryland at a Glance. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>

He married Florence E. Riefle, who had been a student at Maryland Institute (now Maryland Institute College of Art), in 1934 and they had three children, Beth, Leonard, and Mary.<ref name="Dawson">Jack Dawson, "A Family of Artists." Template:Webarchive The Sun Magazine, January 10, 1982.</ref> Leonard died July 25, 1990.<ref name="VA BIRLS" /><ref name="MSA dob/dod" />

Artist

Bahr created realistic landscape paintings, still lifes and portraits.<ref name=Dawson /> Template:Quote box

Portraits and paintings with people

In 1930, Leonard started his professional painting career while still a student, beginning with two portraits of Baltimore's Mayor Preston.Template:Citation needed He made portraits of Bishop Noble C. Powell,<ref name="Noble C. Powell" /> various doctors and administrators at Johns Hopkins Hospital,<ref name="George Finney" /> and other prominent individuals.<ref name="May Garretson Evans" /><ref name="Norbert Witt" /> The State of Maryland commissioned him to replicate the historical portrait, by John Wollaston,<ref>Daniel Carroll.Template:Dead link The History of Maryland Slide Collection. Maryland History. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref> of Daniel Carroll, which is now located on the first floor of the Maryland State House.<ref name="Daniel Carroll" />

Bahr made a painting of his brother, Maurice, at work underneath a Ford Model T automobile. Within the "rough grained" wood frame was a painting made of gray, black and dark brown oil paint. After the initial exhibition at the Baltimore Museum of Art, it traveled in a labor and art tour across the United States.<ref name="Dawson" />

Biblical themes

A Christian, Bahr painted Biblical themes, including Christ in War (1964)<ref>Christ in War. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref> and an altar painting of Christ at Gethsemane for Our Savior's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Lansdowne, Maryland. He made an illustrated book of his drawings depicting the 23rd Psalm of David that was published in 1933.<ref>The Twenty-third Psalm of David. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>

Murals

File:Arrival of Mary Carroll Caton at Castle Thunder.png

Photograph of Behr's 1934 mural Arrival of Mary Carroll Caton at Castle Thunder, created under the Public Works of Art Project and destroyed in the 1960s

Bahr painted murals for the Public Works of Art Project (1933–34). In 1934 he made the mural of Mary Caroll (Polly) Caton, daughter of lawyer, statesman and Contintental Congress representative Charles Carroll. The mural entitled Arrival of Mary Carroll Caton at Castle Thunder was made for the Catonsville High School library. In it, she arrived at the Caton Manor Estate, which was her father's gift to her when she married Richard Caton. It is "presumedly" her husband who greeted her as she exited the carriage. The high school was renovated in the 1960s and the mural was lost in the process.<ref>Photograph of Arrival of Mary Carroll Caton at Castle Thunder. Template:Webarchive Maryland Digital Cultural Heritage. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref> The same year, he made Slaves Rolling Hogsheads of Tobacco Down a Road for the school's library. In it, slaves are rolling casks of tobacco to Elkridge Landing on Rolling Road. Historically slaves rolled the tobacco hogsheads from farms to the Elkridge Landing seaport on the Patapsco River where they would be shipped.<ref>Photograph of Slaves Rolling Hogsheads of Tobacco Down a Road. Template:Webarchive Maryland Digital Cultural Heritage. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref><ref name="Janney2013">Elizabeth Janney. Elkridge Template:Webarchive. Arcadia Publishing; 8 July 2013. Template:ISBN. p. 10–11.</ref> A preliminary drawing for the library murals is held at the Smithsonian.Template:Citation needed He made two more murals for the Baltimore Municipal Aquarium at Druid Hill Park.Template:Citation needed

World War II

His service as Lt. Commander in the Navy during World War II, included illustrating Navy life for various military magazines.Template:Citation needed

Other information

In April 1933, Bahr exhibited at the first annual exhibition of the Maryland Painters, Sculptors and Printmakers at the Baltimore Museum of Art.<ref>1933 Maryland Painters, Sculptors and Printmakers Exhibition photograph and description. Template:Webarchive Maryland Digital Cultural Heritage. Retrieved January 27, 2014.</ref>

Leonard served on art boards and juries and exhibited his work widely, winning many prizes for his artistic eye.Template:Citation needed Articles about him or his works were published in American Artist,<ref>Leon L. Winslow. "The Portraits of Leonard Bahr" American Artist. December 1964.</ref><ref>The Leonard Bahr Collection: MSA SC 5632-3-2. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref> The Appalachian South,<ref>Portrait of Hedy West on the front cover Template:Webarchive. The Appalachian South magazine, 1965. Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref> Gardens Houses and People, The Baltimore Sun Magazine, and the Baltimore Sun.Template:Citation needed

Maryland photographer Emily Hayden took a series of photographs of Bahr painting outdoors, which are in the Maryland Historical Society archives.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In December 1980 and January 1981, Maryland Institute College of Art held a retrospective of his fifty years as a painter.<ref>Leonard Bahr Retrospective...Fifty Years of Painting, December 11-January 18. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref> In the 1980s he was filmed for a video entitled "A Painter's Portrait."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Educator

Bahr taught beginning and advanced painting classes at the Maryland Institute College of Art for more than 50 years, beginning when he was an undergraduate. He taught day and night classes on the weekdays and Saturdays for much of his career.<ref name=Dawson /> In 1980, he retired with honors for service.Template:Citation needed Two years later, he was still teaching one painting class in the fall and spring semesters. Bahr also gave private lessons.<ref name=Dawson />

Collections

Leonard's history and artworks have been published and are in private and public collections, including the Academy Art Museum in Easton, Maryland;<ref>Winter 2011 Newsletter. Template:Webarchive Academy Art Museum. Retrieved January 27, 2014.</ref> University of Arizona;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the Peabody Conservatory of Music; the Baltimore Museum of Art; the Corcoran Gallery of Art; and the Elkridge Heritage Society.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Works

The following is a selected list of Bahr's works. There are images and information for dozens more works with the Maryland State Archives.<ref>Search: Leonard Bahr. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>

Portraits

• Miss Ruth Baetjer, Union Memorial Hospital, 1974<ref>Miss Ruth Baetjer, Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Willem Bosma, 1977, Private collection<ref>Daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Willem Bosma. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Daniel Carroll (1730-1796), oil on canvas, 48 x 38", 1975, Maryland State House, First Floor, Room 107<ref name="Daniel Carroll">Daniel Carroll. Template:Webarchive Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref><ref name="MSA works">Works by Leonard Marion Bahr (1905-1990). Template:Webarchive Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref><ref>Daniel Carroll. Template:Webarchive Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• The Demuth Children, 1970, The H.E. Demuth Jr. Collection<ref>The Demuth Children, Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Ellen, 1974, Private collection<ref>Ellen. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• May Garrettson Evans, (1866-1947), oil on canvas, 38 x 28", 1947, Peabody Art Collection.<ref name="May Garretson Evans">May Garrettson Evans. Template:Webarchive The Peabody Collection. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref><ref name="MSA works" />
• Dr. George Finney, Johns Hopkins Hospital, 1973<ref name="George Finney">Dr. George Finney, Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Florence, 1930<ref>Florence, Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Mary, 1964<ref>Mary. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Mary in Robe, 1948, Private collection<ref>Mary in Robe. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Nude in Wicker Chair, 1970<ref>Nude in Wicker Chair, Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• The Rt. Rev. Bishop Noble C. Powell, Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, 1963<ref name="Noble C. Powell">The Rt. Rev. Bishop Noble C. Powell. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Unknown Man, 1939<ref>Unknown Man. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Lois Crawford Winslow, 1939<ref>Lois Crawford Winslow. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Norbert Witt, Noxell Corporation, 1973<ref name="Norbert Witt">Norbert Witt. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• The Seers: Ambrose & Olga Worrall, 1965<ref>The Seers: Ambrose & Olga Worrall. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>

Landscapes

• Locust Grove, 1980<ref>Locust Grove. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Rain Squall and Sun, 1972<ref>. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Rushing Water, 1955<ref>Rushing Water. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Valley Landscape, 1970<ref>. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>

Other works

• Ballerina Resting<ref>Ballerina Resting. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Big Chair, 1978<ref>Big Chair. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Death and Transfiguration, 1965<ref>Death and Transfiguration. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Girl in Straw Hat<ref>Girl in Straw Hat. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Good Earth, 1952<ref>Good Earth. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Louisiana Belle, 1946<ref>Louisiana Belle. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Pink House, 1936<ref>. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>
• Red Cloth, 1960<ref>Red Cloth. Template:Webarchive Special Collections. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 25, 2014.</ref>