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Elihu Vedder
Elihu Vedder

Elihu Vedder

American, 1836-1923
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Elihu Vedder was an American symbolist painter, book illustrator, and poet, born in New York City. He is best known for his fifty-five illustrations for Edward FitzGerald's translation of The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam (deluxe edition, published by Houghton Mifflin).

Elihu Vedder was born February 26, 1836 in New York City, the son of Dr. Elihu Vedder Sr. and Elizabeth Vedder. His parents were cousins. His father, a dentist, decided to try his luck in Cuba, and this had a profound impact on Elihu Jr.'s childhood. The remainder of his childhood was spent between his maternal grandfather Alexander Vedder's house in Schenectady and a boarding school. His mother supported his goals to be an artist while his father reluctantly assented, convinced that his son should try a different occupation. His brother, Dr. Alexander Madison Vedder, was a Navy surgeon who witnessed the transformation of Japan into a modern culture while he was stationed there.

Vedder trained in New York City with Tompkins H. Matteson, then in Paris with François-Édouard Picot. Finally, he completed his studies in Italy - where he was strongly influenced not only by Italian Renaissance work but also by the modern Macchiaioli painters and the living Italian landscape. He first visited Italy from 1858 until 1860, becoming deeply emotionally attached to fellow painter Giovanni Costa. Their idyllic trips through the Italian countryside were cut short because Vedder's father cut off his financial allowance.

Penniless, Vedder returned to the United States during the American Civil War and made a small living undertaking commercial illustrations. He was involved in the bohemian 'Pfaff's' coffee house group and painted some of his most memorable paintings notable for their visionary nature, romantic imagery and often Oriental influences. Paintings of this time include 'The Roc's Egg', 'The Fisherman and the Genii' and one of his most famous works, 'Lair of the Sea Serpent.' In the United States, Vedder sought out and befriended Walt Whitman, Herman Melville and William Morris Hunt. Vedder became a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1865. At the end of the Civil War, Vedder left America to live in Italy.

He married Caroline Rosekrans on July 13, 1869 in Glen Falls, New York. Elihu Vedder and his wife had four children, only two of whom survived. His daughter Anita Herriman Vedder played a vital role in handling the business of her father, who was notorious for his general aloofness towards details. Elihu's son Enoch Rosekrans Vedder was a promising architect who married jewelry designer Angela Reston. Enoch died while visiting his parents in Italy on April 2, 1916. Elihu had a home in Rome and - after the financial success of his 1884 Rubaiyat work - on the Isle of Capri, then a haven for male aesthetes.

Vedder visited England many times, and was influenced by the Pre-Raphaelites, and was a friend of Simeon Solomon. He was also influenced by the work of English and Irish mystics such as William Blake and William Butler Yeats. In 1890 Vedder helped establish the In Arte Libertas group in Italy.

Tiffany commissioned him to design glassware, mosaics and statuettes for the company. He decorated the hallway of the Reading Room of the Washington Library of Congress, and his mural paintings can still be seen there.

Vedder occasionally returned to the United States, but lived only in Italy from 1906 until his death on January 29, 1923. He is buried in the Protestant Cemetery, Rome. There are no known living descendants of Elihu Vedder as both surviving children died without issue.

270 items

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The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 4

The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 4 (ca. 1867–68)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Figurative
The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 5

The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 5 (ca. 1867–68)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Figurative
The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 6

The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 6 (ca. 1867–68)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Figurative
The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 7

The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 7 (ca. 1867–68)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Figurative
The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 8

The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 8 (ca. 1867–68)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Figurative
The Lost Mind

The Lost Mind (1864–65)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Figurative
The Cup of Love

The Cup of Love (1887)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Mythology
The Pleiades

The Pleiades (1885)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Mythology
Cypress and Poppies

Cypress and Poppies (ca. 1880–90)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Landscape
San Gimignano

San Gimignano

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Landscape
The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 9

The Fable of the Miller, His Son, and the Donkey No. 9 (ca. 1867–68)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Animals
The Cumaean Sibyl

The Cumaean Sibyl (1879 - 1889)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Mythology
Identity

Identity (1887)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Mythology
Dionysian Revelers

Dionysian Revelers

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Father and Son II

Father and Son II (c. 1859)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Father and Son

Father and Son (c. 1859)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
From the Rubáiyát

From the Rubáiyát (c. 1887)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Son and Donkey

Son and Donkey (c. 1859)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Son and the Donkey

Son and the Donkey (c. 1859)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Students in the Latin Quarter, Paris

Students in the Latin Quarter, Paris (c. 1858)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study after Domenichino

Study after Domenichino (c. 1858)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study after Gozzoli

Study after Gozzoli (1858)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study after Old Master

Study after Old Master (c. 1858)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study of a Girl Reading

Study of a Girl Reading (c. 1858)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study of a Girl’s Head

Study of a Girl’s Head (c. 1858)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study of Hunter with Dogs

Study of Hunter with Dogs (c. 1858)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
The Parable of the Miller and the Donkey

The Parable of the Miller and the Donkey (c. 1859)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study for ‘Greek Girls Bathing’ III

Study for ‘Greek Girls Bathing’ III (c. 1872)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study for ‘Greek Girls Bathing’ IV

Study for ‘Greek Girls Bathing’ IV (c. 1872)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
Study for ‘Greek Girls Bathing’ (recto)

Study for ‘Greek Girls Bathing’ (recto) (c. 1872)

Elihu Vedder (American, 1836-1923)
Drawings
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