Paul Cornoyer
American (1864-1923)
Paul Cornoyer, one of the premier painters of urban life in America at the turn of the 19th century, was born in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1864. His early work was heavily influenced by the Barbizon School: pastoral landscapes with an emphasis on realism. He studied at Académie Julian in Paris under Jules Lefebvre, Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant, and Louis Blanc from 1889-1894. When Cornoyer returned to the United States, his work took on a more tonalist style. William Merritt Chase convinced him to move to New York City in 1899, where he would go on to paint his iconic street scenes.
Cornoyer’s first show in New York was a critical success, and he continued to exhibit with various art societies in New York, St. Louis, Boston, and Philadelphia throughout his career. He won prizes at the 1892 American Art Association Exhibition in Paris, the 1895 St. Louis Association Exhibition, and the Salmagundi Club Exhibitions in 1905, 1906, and 1908.
Cornoyer had a gift for teaching and became an art instructor at the Mechanics Institute in New York City. He also taught summer classes in Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Paul Cornoyer paintings are in the permanent collections of the Brooklyn Institute Museum; Yale University Art Gallery; High Museum of Art; Smith College Museum of Art; Saint Louis Art Museum; Kansas City Fine Art Museum; Seattle Art Museum; The Hickory Museum; Joslyn Art Museum; The Newark Museum; and Butler Institute of American Art.
