Thayer, Polly, 1904-2006

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Polly E. Thayer, 1904-2006, painter of Boston, Mass.

From the description of Oral history interview with Polly Thayer, 1995 May 12 - 1996 Feb. 1. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 646401263

A study for the oil painting "Trying on Furs" in the collection of the Boston Athenaeum.

From the description of Trying on furs - study sketch [graphic] [ca. 1940] (Boston Athenaeum). WorldCat record id: 660826171

Polly Thayer (1904- 2006) was a painter and educator in Boston, Mass. Starr spent years studying in art schools and privately in Boston, Provincetown, New York, Madrid, and Paris. She was awarded the Julius Hallgarten Prize from the National Academy of Design and the gold medal at the Boston Tercentenary Exhibition. In 2001, she was the only living artist whose work was part of the Museum of Fine Arts show "A Studio of Her Own: Women Artists in Boston 1870-1940." Thayer's married name was Polly Thayer Starr.

From the description of Polly Thayer (Starr) papers, 1922-2008. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 297147922

Painter; Boston, Mass.

From the description of Polly Thayer interview, 1995 May 12-1996 Feb. 1 [sound recording]. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 276394305

Painter; Boston, Mass.

Thayer was born in the fashionable Back Bay, the daughter of a dean of the Harvard Law School, educated in prestigious girls' schools, and traveled widely with her mother. She studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and with Philip Hale, and Charles W. Hawthorne. In the mid-1920s in New York she led the life of a socialite much as that of an aspiring artist. She won the National Academy of Design's Hallgarten Prize for painting in 1929 with a large nude, Circles. Through the 1930s she showed frequently in Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, and received numerous portrait commissions. Her repertory expanded to include landscapes.

From the description of Polly Thayer papers, [ca. 1930-1995]. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 77651608

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
creatorOf Thayer, Polly, 1904-2006. Kirk Van Winkle [graphic] / Polly Thayer. Boston Athenaeum
creatorOf Polly Thayer (Starr) papers Archives of American Art
creatorOf Thayer, Polly, 1904-. Artist file. Brooklyn Museum Libraries & Archives
creatorOf Thayer, Polly, 1904-2006,. Trying on furs - study sketch [graphic] Boston Athenaeum
creatorOf Thayer, Polly. Artist file : miscellaneous uncataloged material. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Thomas J. Watson Library
creatorOf Thayer, Polly, 1904-2006. [Curtis bathroom at Manchester] [graphic] / P. Thayer. Boston Athenaeum
referencedIn Thayer, Polly (Starr) : [miscellaneous ephemeral material]. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Thomas J. Watson Library
Role Title Holding Repository
creatorOf Oral history interview with Polly Thayer Archives of American Art
Relation Name
associatedWith Brown, Robert F. person
associatedWith Cox, Gardner, 1906-1988. person
associatedWith Hale, Philip Leslie, 1865-1931. person
associatedWith Hawthorne, Charles Webster, 1872-1930. person
associatedWith Hofmann, Hans, 1880-1966. person
associatedWith Hopkinson, Charles, 1869-1962. person
associatedWith Littlefield, William Horace, 1902-1969. person
associatedWith Saltonstall, Nathaniel, 1903-1968. person
associatedWith Sarton, May, 1912- person
associatedWith Starr, Donald C. person
associatedWith Starr, Ethel Randoph. person
associatedWith Swanton, Wendy L. person
associatedWith Van Ness, Beatrice Whitney, 1888-1981. person
associatedWith Van Winkle, Kirk person
associatedWith Wickey, Harry. person
Place Name Admin Code Country
Massachusetts--Boston
Massachusetts--Boston
Massachusetts--Boston
Subject
Educators
Painters
Painters
Women artists
Women painters
Occupation
Artists
Activity

Person

Birth 1904

Death 2006

Information

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