Joseph C. Pollet (1897–1979) “Self Portrait”

Born in Switzerland, Pollet emigrated to NYC in 1911 from Albbruck, Germany. By age 21 he had a promising career as an advertising copywriter, while studying painting at the Art Students League with John Sloan, Robert Henri, and Homer Boss. He settled near Woodstock. He retained ties in Woodstock even during the several years, from 1954 until 1961, when he lived in Paris and Italy. In 1971, a fire destroyed nearly 150 paintings of his paintings in his Greenwich Village studio.

Pollet exhibited at the Whitney Studio Club, Pennsylvania Academy, Art Institute of Chicago, Brooklyn Museum, Carnegie International Exhibition, St. Louis Museum, Cleveland Museum, Toledo Museums, Venice International Exhibition. He received Honorable Mention, Carnegie, 1929. He was awarded a Guggenheim fellowship, 1931.

He is represented in permanent collections of the Newark Museum, Los Angeles County Museum, New York University Gallery of Living Art, Phillips Memorial Gallery, and the Whitney Museum of American Art.

Gift of Doug James, originally acquired by Noelle Gillmor from Joseph Pollet.

Doug James is also an important member of the Woodstock community. He was instrumental in forming Byrdcliffe’s permanent collection and President Emeritus of the Byrdcliffe Guild, as well a board member of the Woodstock Artists Cemetery.

James has lived in Woodstock since 1969. A Wisconsin native, he received his degree from Princeton University. Doug James has been playing drums since he was ten. He has played with John Simon, Paul Butterfield, Happy Traum, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Al Kooper, David Sanborn, The Firesign Theater, Geoff Muldaur, Homesick James, Bucky Pizzarelli, to name a few. He has made two albums with Marilyn Crispell.