Peal Van Sciver and Francis Quirk- They walked the same paths, but did they meet?

Recently, we came upon an auction listing for a floral painting by Pennsylvania Artist Pearl Van Sciver. To Brandywine Valley Auctions credit, they provided a thorough biography with the item description, and it listed a number of potential overlaps with Francis Quirk. The most striking was Van Sciver's relationship with Violet Oakley whom we discussed in our post on her exhibition at Lehigh organized by Francis Quirk. 

She studied at the Stevens School, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and the Moore Institute of Arts and Sciences, formerly known as the School of Design for Women. Among her instructors were Leopold Seyffert, Henry B. Snell, Elliot O'Hara, Paula Balano, Lazar Raditz and Violet Oakley. 

She was an enthusiastic horticulturalist with a beautiful garden and greenhouse at her residence, which became a source for so many of her ambitious, colorful floral still lifes. Other compositions included scenes encountered while traveling in New England, Canada, Mexico and Europe.

Van Sciler was a member of the Philadelphia Plastic Club, the National Association of Women Artists and was Vice-President of the Woodmere Art Museum in 1946, in addition to being a member of many other local and national groups. The recipient of numerous prizes and awards, her work was exhibited in Germantown, Chestnut Hill, the Philadelphia Plastic Club, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Corcoran Gallery of Art, the National Academy of Design, the National Arts Club, and the Argent Gallery in New York in collaboration with the National Association of Women Artists. 

Ms. Van Sciver's work is in the permanent collections of the Allentown Art Museum, Rochester Memorial Art Gallery, Ogontz Junior College and the University of Pennsylvania. The artist died in 1966.

This bio screams of overlap with Francis Quirk.  Let's go through the possible routes.

1. Ogontz College purchased a van Sciver painting in 1947 during Quirk's tenure there that ended in 1950. As the leading artist at the small institution Quirk had to be aware of it. 

2. Francis Quirk was a member at Woodmere Art Museum, which was located just outside of Philadelphia. Van Sciver served on the Museum's Board of Trustees and has two paintings in the Museum's collection.

3. Violet Oakely was well know to Quirk as he hosted her popular show at Lehigh University Art Galleries. Quirk was a driving force at that institution. Van Sciler studied under Oakley who was an important figure at Woodmere. Oakley's charcoal portrait of Van Sciler is in the Museum's collection.

Portrait of Pearl Van Sciler by Victoria Oakley  Woodmere Art Museum

4. Another of Van Sciler's teachers, Leopold Seyffert, was good friends with artist Waldo Peirce who also had an exhibit at Lehigh under Quirk's leadership. 

5. Quirk loved coastal Maine and Van Sciler would also paint there along with many common connections. 

    Pearl Jeanette Aiman Van Sciver-- Kennebunkport, Maine

    Francis J. Quirk-- Kinney Shores, Saco, Maine 

    Leopold Seyffert-- Seal Harbor, Mount Desert Island, Maine  Boothbay, Maine — co-founded Boothbay Studios and taught summer classes there.

    Elliot O’Hara--  Goose Rocks Beach, near Kennebunkport, Maine — established a summer watercolor school. 

    Waldo Peirce--  Bangor and Searsport, Maine.

We have not yet proven the link between them. But this one painting gives us tons of fodder for exploration and threads to follow. 

For your viewing pleasure we provide a few more images of Van Sciler paintings below.