John Orne Johnson Frost (January 2, 1852 – November 3, 1928), who signed his work as J. O. J. Frost, was an early 20th-century American folk artist. He began painting at the age of 70, without receiving any formal training. Frost considered himself a historian, not an artist, and his paintings portrayed daily life in the fishing village of Marblehead, Massachusetts, during the mid-19th century, as well as the town's colonial history.
Frost's works are in the collections of the Marblehead Museum in Marblehead, Massachusetts, the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York, the Shelburne Museum in Shelburne, Vermont and the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C.
Early life
Born in Marblehead on January 2, 1852, Frost lived his early life in a house on Front Street next to Marblehead Harbor. Frost grew up listening to the stories of the local fishermen about the history of Marblehead, and these stories would serve as a major source of inspiration in Frost's later work.Pam Peterson. J. O. J. Frost: A Gallery Guide. Marblehead Historical Society, 2003
At the age of sixteen, Frost went to sea, first on the fishing vessel Josephine in 1868 and then on the Oceania in 1869. The Oceania was nearly lost in a snow storm, and after this experience Frost would never go to sea again. As an old man, J.O.J. wrote down his memories of those experiences.Frost, John Orne Johnson Frost. “The Life of a Unique Character in a Unique Town (lovingly typed by his granddaughter Ethel N. Frost),” unpublished memoir, c1920s. (Original is in the Betty Carpenter Papers, 1919–1953, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Typed transcription is in the Marblehead Museum Archives) Along with other archival materials, his memoir became the basis for a historical novel, Molly Waldo: A Young Man’s First Voyage to the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, Adapted from the Stories of Marblehead Fishermen of the 1800s.Priscilla L. Moulton and Bethe Lee Moulton. Molly Waldo! A Young Man’s First Voyage to the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, Adapted from the Stories of Marblehead Fishermen of the 1800s, The Glide Press, 2013. Foreword by Pam Peterson, Director of the Marblehead Museum and Historical Society.
Frost married Amy Ann ("Annie") Lillibridge in 1873. They remained married until her death. Frost worked a variety of odd jobs, first as a carpenter's apprentice to his strict uncle. Next, he cooked at his father-in-law's restaurant “Lillibridge's,” before opening his own restaurant. On Christmas night of 1888, the Second Great Fire of Marblehead destroyed 50 buildings; one of them was Frost's eatery.Pam Peterson. “Marblehead 101: The two great Marblehead fires,” WickedLocal.com , December 13, 2012. Annie's brother invited him to be partners, so once again Frost manned the stove at the Lillibridge restaurant, until 1893.
J.O.J. left the cookstove to help with his wife's business of growing and selling cut flowers. Annie Frost had become known as a gardening authority and her "Old Fashioned Garden" was featured as an illustrated booklet, published in 1902. Her specialty was sweet peas, a very popular flower at the turn of the century. Planted in rows, with distinct colors and names, the fragrant varieties bore delightful names, such as Blanche Burpee, Othello, Royal Rose, Lovely, and Apple Blossom.Elijah Bruce. An Old Marblehead Garden, Newcomb & Gauss, Printers, Salem, Mass., 1902 Her entrepreneurial talents were the subject of an article in McCall's magazine in 1911.Amy Anna Frost. "Raising Sweet Peas for Profit," McCall's, May 1911, pp. 18–19
When Annie Frost died in 1919, J.O.J. sought new ways to share his passion for history. He wrote newspaper articles for The Marblehead Messenger that told younger generations about the old days. Not long after Annie's death, he found a new outlet for his storytelling; Frost sought to capture his memories of an earlier Marblehead through painting.
Work In 1922, Frost began creating paintings on wallboard using house paint and other available materials. Drawing on his memories and stories he had heard, he depicted Marblehead as a fishing town during the 1860s and 1870s. Frost had no formal artistic training, and his paintings often included descriptive captions reflecting his interest in documenting local history. He also made ship models and wood carvings depicting fish and birds found along the New England coast during his youth. By the end of his life, he had completed approximately 130 paintings and 40 woodcarvings.
Frost attempted to promote his work locally, transporting his paintings around town in a wheelbarrow and establishing a small museum behind his home. By 1925, the museum displayed his work and attracted some tourists, although local interest was limited. There are no recorded sales of his work during his lifetime.
Legacy
Frost died November 3, 1928. His son, Frank Frost, inherited the paintings and gave 70 of them to the Marblehead Historical Society (MHS). (The Marblehead Historical Society is now the Marblehead Museum.) Frank hoped that a museum could be built to house his father's paintings and serve as a memorial to Marblehead's fishermen. The Great Depression put an end to that dream. With no room to display the art, the MHS stored most of the paintings in the attic of the Jeremiah Lee Mansion, the only property owned by the Society. Members provided storage space for the overflow.Marblehead Historical Society. Accession List, 1931. (Archives of the Marblehead Museum) The paintings were out of public view until 1940, when the first exhibit of Frost paintings took place at the Marblehead Arts Association. The Arts Association President, Arthur William Heintzelman (a highly regarded etcher and lithographerLouis A. Homan. Arthur William Heintzelman, Ether: An Appreciation of the Man and His Work with an Authoritative List of His Etchings, Charles E. Goodspeed & Co, Boston, 1920) organized the show with pictures on loan from the MHS. Soon thereafter, the MHS displayed some of their paintings in a third floor bedroom of the Lee Mansion, where they were included in visitor tours.
In 1943, Mr. and Mrs. Albert Carpenter, folk art collectors from Boston, encountered Frost's paintings while touring the Lee Mansion. They became interested in his work and, upon meeting Frank Frost, they began to acquire J.O.J.’s art from him. In 1948, Betty Carpenter helped arrange an exhibition of Frost's work at the Institute of Contemporary Art of Boston.The Institute of Contemporary Art. Paintings by Two New England “Primitives," Frost and Lothrop, November 18 – December 12, 1948 The exhibition was well received, establishing Frost as a significant 20th century painter.Edgar Driscoll, Jr.. "This Week in the Art World: ‘It’s Nuts—It’s Charming,’ It’s ‘Primitive’ Art,” Boston Sunday Globe, November 28, 1948. Betty Carpenter worked hard to publish a book about J.O.J. and his art; although her book was never published, her working files (as well as scrapbooks, photographs, and letters once owned by J.O.J. Frost) are now housed at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art in Washington, D.C.
In the early 1950s the Frost homestead was sold. The new owners, Frederick "Dyke" Mason, Jr., and his wife Mary, were renovating the old house, when they discovered fragments of about 30 paintings mounted facing inward to the studs. Charles Childs of Childs Gallery in Boston took on the task of reconstructing and restoring the paintings. At the time, the works of untrained, "primitive" painters were being recognized and sought out by collectors. Mr. Childs agreed to exhibit 28 paintings at his Newbury Street gallery in May 1954, to be followed by a similar show at the Knoedler Galleries in New York City.Childs Gallery. J.O.J. Frost: Primitive Paintings of Marblehead by One of New England’s Most Gifted and Unusual Artists. Exhibition and Sale of a Newly Discovered Collection of Old Paintings, 169 Newbury St., Boston, May 17 – July 3, 1954 Both galleries catered to the prominent folk art collectors of the day. J.O.J. Frost's wallboard art attracted the attention of an eminent folk art scholar, Nina Fletcher Little. Mrs. Little was an adviser to museums regarding their folk art holdings. She encouraged numerous collectors to buy specific Frost works and bought several for her own collection.Nina Fletcher Little. “J.O.J. Frost, Painter-Historian of Marblehead,” Art in America, October 1955. Most of the paintings were sold before they went to New York. The Childs and Knoedler exhibitions generated a great deal of press coverage and resulted in important critical commentary about the paintings of John Orne Johnson Frost.,Robert Taylor. “A Marblehead Fisherman Who Painted an American Dream,” Boston Sunday Herald, May 23, 1954Christopher E. Fremantle. “New York Commentary,” The Studio: The Leading Magazine of Contemporary Art, October 1954
The Mason's discovery led to a court case, contesting the ownership of the paintings. The Carpenters filed suit in the name of Frank Frost's estate, believing they had acquired the paintings from Frank's widow.Memorandum, Re: Petition for Bill in Equity brought in the Essex Probate Court by John M. Marbes, Administrator of the Estate of Frank A. Frost vs. Frederick D. Mason, Jr. and Mary H. Mason, both of Marblehead, and Myriam K. Hubbard and Ariel Perry Hall, both of Marblehead, d/b/u the firm style and name The Neptune Gallery, and John M. Barnes as he is Executor u/w/o Sadie J. Frost, Essex Probate No. 246296. August 13, 1956 The trial triggered numerous newspaper headlines, such as “Art, Real Estate Pose Odd Problem of Law,”“Art, Real Estate Pose Odd Problem of Law,” Boston Herald, November 30, 1956 and "Saved Jam But Passed Up Grandpa’s $17,000 Art".Saved Jam But Passed Up Grandpa’s $17,000 Art, She Says, Boston Daily Record, December 4, 1956 Albert Carpenter had a heart attack while testifying, resulting in a delay in the case.“Frost Painting Claimant Collapses While Testifying. Art Expert Carpenter Taken to Hospital After Showing Receipt for “All” Pictures,” Boston Globe, December 5, 1956 The judge eventually ruled in favor of the Masons, declaring the paintings an integral part of the real estate they had purchased.Marblehead Couple Is Ruled Rightful Owners Of Paintings Used As Wallboard in Home,” Beverly Evening Times, June 22, 1957
One of the paintings sold by Childs found its way back home. On Christmas Day of 1997, The Marblehead Reporter announced a very special gift to the town from an anonymous Marblehead family.George Derringer. “Painting Comes Home to Marblehead,” Marblehead Reporter, December 25, 1997. The Board of Selectmen was presented with The Sale of Marblehead by the Indians to the White Settlers, a wallboard painting with which J.O.J. had been photographed while he was still alive. Now titled The Purchase of Marblehead (and sometimes referred to as The Deed Painting), this Frost work was donated with the stipulation that it always hang in the room where the deed is housed. Currently hanging in the Selectman's Room of Abbot Hall, near the iconic The Spirit of ’76 by Archibald M. Willard, Frost's painting is a lasting tribute to the artist's drive to record the earliest history of his beloved town.