Collection: Charles Demuth

Charles Demuth (1883–1935) was an American painter born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and later in Paris at Académie Colarossi and Académie Julian. Demuth specialized in watercolors before turning to oils late in his career, developing the style of painting known as Precisionism, a movement he helped lead.

Demuth's work channeled modern European movements into American art, retaining aspects of Cubism after his time in Paris. His watercolors, often depicting flowers, fruit, and vegetables, combined exacting botanical observation with loosely Cubist abstraction, exhibiting a magical liveliness. In the 1920s, he created a series of "collage paintings" that incorporated letters, objects, and figures.

Demuth was a lifelong resident of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He was part of the avant-garde art scene in Paris and later joined Alfred Stieglitz's avant-garde circle, exhibiting at his gallery, 291. He formed a close friendship with William Carlos Williams during his student years.