Maurice Hirschfeld has worked most of his life as a tailor – here are 3 things to know about the self-taught artist who was revered by the Surrealists and is now a museum star

Today, Polish-American artist Maurice Hirschfeld is considered one of the most important self-taught artists of the 20th century. But this is not always the case. The term “outsider art” was coined in 1972, after Hirschfeld’s death in 1946, but his paintings still suffer from the critical bias that accompanies art made outside of prevailing styles and contexts. In the decades that followed, Hirschfeld’s contribution as an important modernist painter was frequently overlooked, and his works became on the margins of art history.

The American Folk Art Museum (AFAM) in New York has attempted to rectify this, by mounting the most comprehensive exhibition yet of the artist’s work with “He rediscovered Maurice Hirschfeld. The critically acclaimed show, which will run until January 29, 2023, seeks not only to introduce Hirshfield to a contemporary audience, but also to solidify his place within the larger trajectory of modern art and rectify years of critical neglect. During his lifetime, this AFAM exhibition was met with wide acclaim by critics and audiences alike.

The installation show, “Morris Hirschfeld Rediscovered.” Courtesy of the Museum of American Folk Art, New York.

Born in 1872 in Poland, Hirschfeld led a life largely detached from the art world—although he dabbled in woodcarving and made a sculpture for a local synagogue as a teenager. He immigrated to New York City at the age of 18, where he initially worked in a women’s clothing factory, first as a pattern cutter before working his way into dressmaking. Eventually, he left the factory and went into business with his brother Abraham, opening a small shop for ladies’ coats and suits.

12 years later, the shop closed and Hirschfeld opened the “EZ Walk Manufacturing Company” with his wife, Henriette. The most successful items produced were “boudoir slippers” – decorative and comfortable shoes intended for home wear – which contributed greatly to the growth of the company. At its peak, the company had more than 300 employees and made nearly $1 million a year. House slippers were arguably Hirschfeld’s greatest commercial success, and 14 of his patented designs from the 1920s were meticulously recreated by artist Liz Blahd for the AFAM Gallery as homages to this aspect of the artist’s life.

In celebration of this intriguing novel and exhibition, we’ve taken a deep dive into Hirshfield’s life and work and found three incredible facts about the artist to give viewers more insight into his work.

The installation show, “Morris Hirschfeld Rediscovered.” Photo: Eva Cruz/EveryStory. Courtesy of the Museum of American Folk Art, New York.

All of Hirschfeld’s paintings were painted in the last seven years of his life

Maurice Hirschfeld, left: Angora Cat (elaboration) (1937–39), correct: Angora Cat (1937-1939). Collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, Sidney and Harriet Janis Collection. © 2022 Robert and Gail Rentzer for Estate of Morris Hirshfield / VAGA licensed at the Artists’ Rights Society (ARS), New York.

With an incredibly varied and varied body of work, Hirschfeld appears to have had a long and arduous artistic career, or at least a history of informal experimentation with painting. But he has spent most of his career working in women’s clothing and shoes. Forced to retire in 1935 due to failing health, Hirschfeld did not begin painting until the age of sixty-five. Angora Cat (1937-1939). Supporting this work was a pre-existing painting that hung in Morris and Henriette’s Brooklyn apartment; The lion figurine on a decorative shelf above the cat’s head is the remnant of the overlay painting, which has been cleverly incorporated into the new composition. The extreme detail that Hirschfeld pushed into every aspect of his paintings, such as the inclusion of repetitive, intricately detailed patterns across the backgrounds and costumes, indicate the rigorous pace of his artistic output. All together, Hirshfield’s oeuvre of about 80 paintings was created entirely in the last seven years of his life – perhaps a compelling reminder that it’s never too late to start something new.

Hirshfield’s first major retrospective led to

museum Demotion of director

The installation show, “Morris Hirschfeld Rediscovered.” Recreation of part of the Museum of Modern Art, “Paintings of Maurice Hirschfeld” (1943). Photo: Eva Cruz/EveryStory. Courtesy of the Museum of American Folk Art, New York.

One of the most significant (and perhaps infamous) events in Hirschfeld’s relatively short career as an artist was his 1943 retrospective exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, New York – making him the first self-taught artist to have such a comprehensive show in a museum. According to the press release, “Paintings by Maurice Hirschfeld” included 30 “primitive paintings” and was installed under the supervision of Sidney Janis, a supporter of Hirschfeld’s work and influential New York dealer and collector who was at the time on the museum’s advisory committee. The show was a critical failure, and the press it received was extremely negative—art critics collectively referred to Hirschfeld as “the master of two left feet,” a reference to the flat perspective the artist used in his compositions, particularly the women. Although there were other factors of course, the outpouring of bad press due to the exhibition led to the museum’s curators To download the rank of manager Alfred Barr – who considered Hirschfeld tiger (1940) An “Unforgettable” Modern Animal Painting – Before the Show Ends. However, the exhibition at AFAM has reclaimed Hirshfield’s title, with the catalog accompanying the current exhibition titled A Left-footed Master: Rediscovering Maurice HirschfeldWritten by art historian Richard Meyer.

Surrealists loved his work

Maurice Hirschfeld, The girl with the bathroom (1942). Collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, Sidney and Harriet Janis Collection. © 2022 Robert and Gail Rentzer for Estate of Morris Hirshfield / VAGA licensed at the Artists’ Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Despite the prevailing criticism of Hirschfeld’s paintings, many surrealists working in New York at the time embraced his unique style. Marcel Duchamp and André Breton were both admirers of Hirschfeld’s interesting and unique paintings, Breton included The girl with the bathroom (1942) At The First Papers of Surrealism 1942 – the first major surrealist art exhibition in the United States that same year, examples of Hirschfeld’s work are documented in the home of Peggy Guggenheim, in a photo shoot by Hermann Landshoff. In these portraits, surrealist giants Duchamp, Breton, Leonora Carrington, and Max Ernst (Guggenheim’s husband at the time) appear grouped around her and clearly amazed by Hirschfeld. Naked On The Window (a Hot July Night) (1941). In 1945 Hirshfield was asked to contribute artwork for the cover of the October issue Watch: The Modern Journal, a periodical that advocated avant-garde art, with an emphasis on surrealism. Hirshfield created a new piece displaying one of his signature flat women on a finely detailed field of blue, flanked by three birds and decorated with a floral sash.

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