Walter Farndon was born in Coventry, England in 1876 and soon immigrated to the United States and settled in Yonkers, NY.  His first job was as a designer at a carpet company, painting watercolor floral motifs that would be made into rugs.  He decided to pursue a full time career as an artist and enrolled in the National Academy of Design, where he was later elected an Associate in 1928, and an Academician in 1937.  He also studied with Robert Henri and was a member of the Society of Independent Artists.  Farndon traveled extensively along the East Coast and New England finding favorite seaside locations such as Monhegan Island, Boothbay Harbor, Gloucester, MA, Long Island and Nova Scotia. He died in 1964 in Valley Stream, NY.

Studied

designer at a carpet company, painting floral motifs, early 1890s; NAD with Edgar M. Ward, 1898; Mechanic’s Inst., 1900 (degree in arch. drafting, 1912).

Member

Country Sketch Cl., 1897; ANA, 1928; NA, 1937; NYWCC, 1927; NYSP; Artists Fellowhip; NA, AWCS (Treas., 19928-30, Life Mem., 1961); NAC (Life Mem., 1930); Allied A. Am.; SC; AAPL; Audubon Artists; Westchester Artists; Nassau County Art Lg; Grand Central Art Gal.; NY Soc. Painters, 1927.

Exhibited

AIC; Boston AC, 1903; PAFA, 1904-30; Corcoran Gal, 1907, 1910, 1914, 1930; Pan-Pac. Expo, 1915; Soc. Indp. A., 1917; Brooklyn Mus., 1921; NAD; Fort Worth AM, 1933; MacDowell Cl., NYC, 1914-16; Grand Central AG, NYC, 1926, 1928, 1945-46; Nassau AL, 1929 (2nd prize); NAD, annually, 1902-on, with prizes in 1930, 1942 (1st prize), 1944 (silver med), 1959 (2nd prize); NJ Fed. Women’s Clubs, 1930 (1st prize): New Rochelle AA; NYWCC & AWCS, prizes in 1925, 1962; NY Soc. Painters, 1936-37; Orlando AA; Municipal Gal., NYC, 1939; AAPL, 1944, 1948; SC, prizes in 1919, 1925-29, 1940, 1944; TMA; NAC, prizes in 1930, 1939, 1942, 1952, 1957, 1959, 1962; All.A.Am., 1940 (prize), 1944 (prize); Westchester AA, 1952, 1958 (special exh., citation & gold medal); Hudson Valley AA, 1951 (gold medal for 50 years of art contribution); Hofstra College, 1955; Audubon Artists, 19958; Royal Academy, 1962 (prize); Vose Gal; Boston 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996 (solos).   

Work

BM; NAC; SC; Hickory Mus. Art (NC); MMA; NAD.

Resources

Who’s Who, 1086