Robert LaHotan
American,
(1927–2002)
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Robert L. LaHotan received both his B.A. and M.F.A degrees from Columbia University. He was a Fullbright Scholar at the University of Frieburg, Germany from 1953-1955. Through their friendship with Charles Wadsworth, LaHotan and his companion John Heliker were attracted by the beauty of Great Cranberry Island and in the late 1950’s purchased the old Stanley home and boatyard. LaHotan’s studio was a refurbished boathouse on the shore’s edge of The Pool. As an artist, LaHotan was deeply influenced by Matisse, Bonnard, Vuillard and his companion Heliker. His delicate still life’s and interior scenes are evocative of an earlier and perhaps more tranquil time while his landscapes of the Island, and especially the area surrounding his house, are in bold, forceful colors with broad impressionistic strokes.
After the death of Heliker in 2000 and until his own death in 2002, LaHotan devoted his time and energy to establishing The Heliker-LaHotan Foundation, Inc., a joint project conceived with Mr. Heliker in 1993. The Foundation is dedicated to the artistic vision of the two painters who were its founders, and in New York City and Maine is engaged in a variety of projects that perpetuate their legacy, including a residency program on Great Cranberry Island for painters and sculptors of established ability. The Foundation, which maintains the former home and studios of the two artists, will sponsor its first resident in August, 2005.
LaHotan’s works are in many major museums and private collections, especially in New York City. He was the recipient of many awards, the latest being the Benjamin Altman Landscape Prize from the National Academy of Design. He was represented by Kraushaar Gallery in New York for over three decades.
Source: Heliker-LaHotan Foundation