Pauline Palmer (American, 1867-1938) was born in McHenry, Illinois in 1867. She was schooled at a convent in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and later studied at the Art Institute in Chicago. She also studied with William Merritt Chase, Kenneth Hayes Miller, and Charles Hawthorne. She traveled to Paris and studied under Simon, Collin, and Courtois. She married Dr. Albert Palmer of Chicago and they established a summer home in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where Palmer made friends with the Portuguese fishermen’s families and used their children as her subject matter. She was a large part of the art community in Massachusetts and spent most of her time in her Cape Cod Studio after her husband’s death. Palmer was involved in many organizations such as the Chicago Municipal Art League, Chicago Art Guild, and the Chicago Women’s Salon. She was also a director of the Chicago Drama League and in 1918, was elected the first woman President of the Chicago Society of Artists. Pauline Palmer became a painter in realist / impressionist style of subjects including street and beach scenes, landscapes, genre, and portraits. She became ill and died of pneumonia in 1938 in Trondheim, Norway.

Studied

AIC with W.M. Chase, R.E. Miller, C.W. Hawthorne; in Paris with Collin, Prinet, Courtois, Simon.

Member

Chicago P&S; Chicago AC; Chicago Gal. Assn.; Grand Central Gal.; Nat. Am. Lg. Pen Women’s; Provincetown AA.

Exhibited

PAFA Ann., 1899, 1908, 1912-32; St. Louis Expo, 1904 (medal); AIC, 1907 (prizes), 1914 (portrait), 1916 (prizes), 1917 (prize), 1920 (prize), 1924 (prize), 1926 (prize), 1937 (prize); SWA, 1915 (prize); Chicago AG, 1915 (prize); Corcoran Gal. Biennials, 1916, 1926; Chicago SA, 1920 (medal); Peoria, IL (medal); NAWPS, 1924 (prize); Chicago Gal. Assn., 1928 (prize), 1929 (prize), 1931 (prize), 1936 (gold); Findley Gal., 1935 (medal).

Work

West End Women’s Club; Munic. Art Lg. Collection; AIC Arche Club, Chicago; Decatur (IL) Pub. Sch. Collection; Muncie (IN) AA; Chicago Municipal Comn.; Aurora (IL) Art Lg.; Aurora (IL) AA; Rockford (IL) AA; Springfield (IL) AA; Delgado Mus. Art; San Diego Gal. FA; Acad. FA, Elgin, IL

Resources

WW38; Falk, Exh. Record Series; askart.com; Who Was Who in American Art 400 Years of Artists in America 2512.