Rackliffe - Howard E

Rackliffe, Howard E. (1917-1987)

He led the life of a loner, a supreme individualist, who developed his own style. Before he died he had the pleasure of seeing his art exhibited in numerous shows, and he received awards from the Connecticut Watercolor Society and the Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts. In 1950 Vivien Raynor wrote a review for the New York Times of a show entitled “Arcadia Revisited” at the New Britain Museum of American Art. Reflecting on his solitary path through life, she wrote that his paintings were “outgoing art from a man who seems to have been anything but . . .” Like Irving Katzenstein, Rackliffe’s works remain popular in the Greater Hartford area. Just recently, from January 28-Febraury 28, 2009, LaMotta Fine Art of Hartford ran a show entitled, Vital Ground, featuring the work of Jonathan Scoville and Howard Rackliffe.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; AskART; Howard Rackliffe 1917-1987; Paintings and Poems (Elmwood, Connecticut 1990). There are many articles in the Hartford Courant and New York Times announcing Rackliffe’s exhibitions. The following are selected from the New YorkTimes citations on the basis of their evaluations of his art and biographical data: Vivien Raynor, “Art; Regional Artists’ Work at Atheneum,” March 22, 1981; Vivien Rayonor, Art; Romantic Views Recall the Berkshires,” September 30, 1990; William Zimmer, “Where Maine Shines Alone,” August 9, 1992; William Zimmer, Perennial Favorite in a Compact Show,” August 25, 1996; Eleanor Charles, “The Guide,” January 5, 2003; Connecticut Art Scene, “Friday opening at La Motta Fine Art: Vital Ground,”  January 29, 2009. “Howard Rackliffe (1917-1987),” Paesaggio Fine Art.

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Howard Rackliffe:

Rackliffe, Howard E