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Theresa Bernstein

1890-03-01 – 2002-02-12

Portrait of Theresa Bernstein
Description: Theresa Bernstein lived to be approximately 111 years old. During her long life, she gained recognition as one of the first women to paint in the Realist style. While she tried to veil her gender by signing her paintings 'T. Bernstein', she was both hailed and flailed for "painting like a man" in the 1910s. Her determination was legendary, when she broke her right hand, she painted with her left. When she could no longer hold a brush, she painted by squirting paint from tubes. Creator/Photographer: Peter A. Juley & Son Medium: Black and white photographic print Dimensions: 8 in x 10 in Culture: American Date: 1930 Persistent URL: [1] Repository: Archives of American Art Native name Archives of American Art Parent institution Smithsonian Institution Location Washington, D.C. Coordinates 38° 53′ 52.44″ N, 77° 01′ 21.72″ W Established 1954 Website www.aaa.si.edu Authority file : Q2860568 VIAF: 151134814 ISNI: 0000000458972996 LCCN: n79065944 NLA: 35007823 GND: 1023549-8 WorldCat institution QS:P195,Q2860568 Collection: Peter A. Juley & Son Collection - The Peter A. Juley & Son Collection is comprised of 127,000 black-and-white photographic negatives documenting the works of more than 11,000 American artists. Throughout its long history, from 1896 to 1975, the Juley firm served as the largest and most respected fine arts photography firm in New York. The Juley Collection, acquired by the Smithsonian American Art Museum in 1975, constitutes a unique visual record of American art sometimes providing the only photographic documentation of altered, damaged, or lost works. Included in the collection are over 4,700 photographic portraits of artists. Accession number: J0063639Credit: Smithsonian Institution from United States

Life & Legacy

Theresa Ferber Bernstein-Meyerowitz (March 1, 1890 – February 13, 2002) was an American artist, writer, and supercentenarian born in Kraków, in what is now Poland, and raised in Philadelphia. She received her art training in Philadelphia and New York City. Over the course of nearly a century, she produced hundreds of paintings and other artwork, plus several books and journals.
Bernstein and her husband William Meyerowitz, who was also an artist, lived and worked in Manhattan and Gloucester, Massachusetts. She painted portraits and scenes of daily life, plus reflections of the major issues of her time, in a modern style that evolved from realism to expressionism. She was active in several art associations and promoted her husband's work as well as her own. Her artworks are found in dozens of museums and private collections in the United States and abroad. She remained active all her life and was honored with a solo exhibition of 110 art works to celebrate her 110th birthday.
Bernstein also authored several books, including a biography of her husband and a journal about their many trips to Israel.
She died in 2002, just a couple of weeks short of her 112th birthday.

Occupation & Career

painter, writer, artist

Education

Art Students League of New York

Accomplishments, Inventions & Publications

Women's Caucus for Art Lifetime Achievement Award

Legacy Highlights

Honors & Awards

Women's Caucus for Art Lifetime Achievement Award

Education & Institutions

Art Students League of New York

Verified Legacy Record

Sources & Provenance

  1. Wikidata population candidate Q7782851 — wikidata View source

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