Emile Gruppe (American, 1896-1978), Docked Fishing Boats

Oil on canvas, signed at lower right, framed.

Stretcher size 20 1/4 x 24 in.; Frame dimensions 25 x 29 1/8 in.

This painting was gifted to the consignor as a wedding present from Emile Gruppe in 1965. The consignor’s father, himself an artist, had spent a summer studying at Gruppe’s school, where the two developed a close friendship. Their bond extended beyond the classroom, as they painted together in Tarpon Springs and along Florida’s west coast.

Emile Albert Gruppé (1896–1978) was an American painter best known for his vibrant impressionist landscapes and harbor scenes, particularly those of Gloucester, Massachusetts, and Rockport, where he became a central figure in the Cape Ann art community. Born in Rochester, New York, into a family of artists—his father being landscape painter Charles P. Gruppé—he studied at the National Academy of Design in New York and the Académie de la Grande Chaumière in Paris.

In 1942, he and his mentor John Fabian Carlsen founded the Gruppe Summer School in Gloucester. He later added a second campus in the mountains of Vermont, near the village of Jeffersonville in the town of Cambridge. Late in life, he began spending time in Naples, Florida.

Gruppe exhibited extensively throughout his life and was honored with awards from The National Academy, The Salmagundi Club, North Shore Arts Association, Rockport Art Association and more.

Good estate condition, spot of surface grime to upper left edge, very slight rubbing to the canvas edge, small dent at lower right corner.