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John Ottis Adams

Artist: John Ottis Adams
Birth: July 8, 1851
Birth City: Amity Indiana, Johnson County
Death: January 28, 1927 (age 75)
Burial: Beech Grove Cemetery, Muncie, In
Marriage: Winfred Bradey 1897
Children: John Alban Adams (9/10/1900 - 1971), Edward Wolf (11/19/1902 - ?), Robert Brady Adams (7/19/1904 - 1951)

Artist Summary

Subject Matter: Portraits, Landscapes Artistic Style, Impressionism
Art Associations: Hoosier School, Society of Western Artists (1896-1914)
Art Education: Wabash College 1871, South Kensington School in London, Royal Academy Munich Germany
Art Awards: 1904 - St Louis Exposition for "Iridescence," 1907 - Fine Arts Building prize for "A Snowy Morning" - awarded $500.

Biography of John Ottis Adams

Early Art Education and Training (1851 to 1880)


John Ottis Adams
John Ottis Adams
John Ottis Adams was born in the small town of Amity Indiana on July 8th, 1851, to parents Alban Housley and Elizabeth Adams. As a young boy, John attended public schools in Franklin, Shelbyville, and high school in Martinsville, Indiana. He enrolled in Wabash College in 1871 but left after a year to study art under John Parker at the South Kensington School in London from 1872 to 1874. After receiving a certificate from Kensington, Adams returned to the United States living in different towns until returning to Muncie Indiana to open a studio and lived for four years between 1876 and 1880.

John Ottis Adams Painting and Living in  Brookville Indiana (1880 to 1900)


"Blue and Gold" by John otti Adams
Blue And Gold
In 1880, Adams left for Europe to study at the Royal Academy in Munich, Germany, for seven years with fellow Indiana artists Theodore C. Steele and Samuel Richards. Leaving Germany in 1887, he returned to Muncie, Indiana, to spend his time painting portraits, landscapes and to hone his painting skills. In addition to painting, he taught art classes in Muncie and Union City, Indiana. Adams was also involved in the establishment of the art school in Ft Wayne, In. During this time, Adams and fellow Artist T. C. Steele discovered the artistic beauty of the Whitewater Valley around Brookville, Indiana. Steele and Adams were so taken with the surrounding area they bought the old Mills house, later to be known as the Hermitage in Brookville. In 1896, John Adams, along with T. C. Steele, John Elwood Bundy, and fourteen other artists, formed the "Society of Western Artists," which continued as an organization until 1914. In 1898, Adams married Winfred Brady, who was also an artist. Winfred received her training at the Drexel Institute in Philadelphia and the art student league of New York City. John and Winfred moved to Brookville, In. in the Spring of 1899.

Painting in Florida and Michigan(1900 to 1927)

As with the Art School of Ft Wayne, Adams helped found the John Herron Art Institute in 1902. They soon afterward joined the faculty as a drawing and painting instructor.

He served as the lead instructor from 1904 to 1909. Adams spent some summers in Leland, Michigan, painting the great lakes. Adams became interested in exploring and painting tropical landscapes. From 1915 Adams started spending winter months working in St Petersburg, Florida, where he opened a studio and received many visitors from Indiana and Ohio. During the last years of his life, Adams would work as often as he could in Florida and Michigan, finally returning to Indiana, for good.

Exhibitions:

Society of Western Artists - John Otis Adam 1896 to 1901

Society of Western ArtistThe First Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1896 - 1897 submitted painting titled - "A Peaceful Vale," "Hoosier Opulence," "The Brook at Metamora," "A Morning Call."
The Second Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1897 - 1898 submitted painting titled - "Hoosier Gold," "Sycamores All in Yellow Clad," "The Ford," "Mid October."
The Third Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1898 - 1899 submitted paintings titled - "A December Freshet," "A Hazy Morning in October."
The Fourth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1899 - 1900 submitted paintings titled - "November," Listing To The Birds." "A Phase of November," "The Hermitage Garden"
The Fifth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1900 - 1901 submitted paintings titled - "Green and Gray," "In the Whitewater Valley," "Mid October," "Moonlight on the Whitewater," "Soft shadowy days," "Indiana Highlands."

Society of Western Artists - John Otis Adams 1902 to 1907


The Sixth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1902 submitted paintings titled - "The First Breath of Autumn," "In the Embrace of Autumn," "The Closing of an Autumn Day," "The Bracken Farm," "The Wane of Winter."
The Seventh Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1902 - 1903 submitted paintings titled - "The Iridescence of a Shallow Stream," "The Sombre Gloom of the Hills," "Morning on the Farm."
The Eighth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1903 - 1904 submitted paintings titled - "Old Mills of Brookville," "Our Village."
The Ninth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1904 - 1905 submitted paintings titled - "Moonlight on the Whitewater," From Hilltop to Hilltop," "Late Afternoon."
The Tenth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1905 - 1906 submitted paintings titled - "Reflections of an Old Mill," "November." "An old red bridge," "Dusk."
The Eleventh Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1906 - 1907 submitted paintings titled - "The Pool," "Late Autumn." "A Cloudy Morning"
The Twelfth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1907 - 1908 submitted paintings titled - "A Winter Morning," "September."

Society of Western Artists - John Otis Adams 1908 to 1913

The Thirteenth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1908 - 1900 submitted paintings titled - "The Brook," "October," "Blue and Grey."
The Fourteenth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1909 - 1910 submitted paintings titled - "Winter," "Moonlight on Whitewater."
The Fifteenth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1910 - 1911 submitted paintings titled - "A shallow stream," "An Autumn Afternoon."
The Sixteenth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1911 - 1912 submitted paintings titled - "Iris," "A Frosty Morning."
The Seventeenth Annual Exhibition of The Society of Western Artists 1912 - 1913 submitted paintings titled - "When the Redbud's in Bloom," "A Morning in March."

Other Relevant Posts

Members of the Hoosier Group: T.C. SteeleWilliam ForsythRichard B. GruelleOtto Stark


Sources

August Refiel (1915). History of Franklin County Indiana: Her People, Industries, Institutions, page 584 - 586
Mary Q. Burnet ((1921). Art and Artist of Indiana. New York the Century Company, pages 163 - 170
Art Institute of Chicago (1897), The First Exhibition of the Annual Society of Western Artist,s Page 11
Art Institute of Chicago (1898), The Second Exhibition of the Annual Society of Western Artists, Page 11
Art Institute of Chicago (1899), The Third Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 11
Art Institute of Chicago (1900), The Fourth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 2
Art Institute of Chicago (1901), The Fifth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 4
Art Institute of Chicago (1902), The Sixth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1903), The Seventh Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1903 -1904), The Eighth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1904), The Ninth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1905), The Tenth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1906), The Eleventh Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1907), The Twelfth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1909), The Thirteenth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1910), The Fourteenth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists, Page 7
Art Institute of Chicago (1911), The Fifteenth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists
Art Institute of Chicago (1912), The Sixteenth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists
Art Institute of Chicago (1912), The Sixteenth Annual Exhibition of the Society of Western Artists

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