Edward Redfield

Edward Willis Redfield was an American Impressionist landscape painter based out of the New Hope, Pennsylvania area. He was born in Bridgeville, Delaware on December 18, 1869, but was raised in Camden, New Jersey. By the age of twelve, he began his art education by attending classes at Spring Garden Institute and the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. He later studied privately under Henry Rolfe (1823–1881) who helped him pass the entrance exam to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Rolfe was accredited for teaching Redfield the technique of getting a painting finished in one setting, a technique that would benefit him greatly throughout his art career as he became a very prolific and greatly enjoyed painting en plein air, in all weather conditions. He started his education at the Academy in 1887 and in two years, after his graduation, Redfield traveled to Paris, intending to study portraiture while at the Académie Julian under Adolphe William Bouguereau (1825-1905) and Tony Robert-Fleury (1837–1911). Though in Paris, he developed a love for landscapes and painting outdoors among the elements. During a trip to Brolles, he met his future wife Elise Deligant whom he married in 1893.

They returned to the United States following their marriage in London and lived with Redfield’s parents in Glenside, PA. At this time, he was deep into the art scene, exhibiting throughout the United States and Europe at the Paris Salon and had even won his first solo exhibition in Boston. In 1898, the Redfields purchased a farm in Center Bridge, Pennsylvania where Redfield enjoyed the rugged landscapes and harsh winters while painting outside. After an accident resulting in the death of their young child in 1899, they went back to France so Elise could grieve with her family. Despite this tragedy, Redfield continued creating and showing his paintings, with his broad-brushed works earning him at least 15 solo exhibitions within the next twenty years as well as innumerable awards. He was known greatly for his large scale snow covered paintings of Bucks County, PA but also produced summer and spring scenes while in Maine. He began experimenting with more urban landscapes later in his career, painting well into his eighties. In the 1940’s, he began to enjoy creating hook rugs as well as other furniture in addition to his painting. Prior to his death on October 19, 1965, Edward Redfield was one of the most decorated artist and a true artistic pioneer of the New Hope area.

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