User:Richard Arthur Norton (1958- )/Osborne Theomun Olsen

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Osborne Theomun Olsen (1883-1971) circa 1930

Osborne Art Studio decorated Hutschenreuther Selb cup and saucer

Osborne Art Studio backstamp on Hutschenreuther Selb saucer

Osborne Theomun Olsen (June 9, 1883 - January 9, 1971) was the owner of Osborne Art Studios in Chicago, Illinois, which existed from 1910 to 1973.

1 Name
2 Birth and siblings
3 Orphaned
4 Marriage and children
5 World War I
6 Osborne Art Studio
7 Death and burial
8 Continuation of Osborne Art Studio
9 Timeline
10 Porcelain blanks used by Osborne Art Studios
11 References
12 See also
13 External link

[edit] Name

His name was erroneously thought to be "Osborne Titaman Olsen" by his descendents. It was found written in the World War I draft registration as "Osborne Theomun Olsen". This was discovered in 2006.

[edit] Birth and siblings

Osborne was born in Chicago, Illinois under the name Asbjorn Olsen. His mother was Marie Jensen of Farsund, Norway; and his father was an Olsen, also born in Norway. Osborne had the following siblings: Jennie Olsen (1881-?) who married a Henning and may have been buried in Mount Olive Cemetery; Perry Olsen (1885-1971) who died in Oakland, California; and Harriet Olsen (1889-?).

[edit] Orphaned

Both of Osborne's parents were dead by 1900 and the four children went to live with their widowed aunt: Katherine Jensen (1857-1946), who was born in Norway and had been married to Steffen Barca. Katherine had two children: Henry Barca (1886-1961) and Leo Barca (1887-1924). In 1900 Osborne was already working as a decorator.

[edit] Marriage and children

Osborne married Augusta Schmidt (1883-1974) on June 3, 1905, in Chicago and had the following children: Perry Olsen (1907-1974) who married Lavina Minnie Price (1909-1989); and Evelyn Olsen (1909-2002) who married Wilbur Lamond (1912-1983).

[edit] World War I

He registered for the draft on September 18, 1918 under the name "Osborne Theomun Olsen". He listed his job as "china painting" at 2520 North Milwaukee Avenue. He had blue eyes and brown hair, and did not serve in World War I.

[edit] Osborne Art Studio

Osborne owned Osborne Art Studio in Chicago which decorated porcelain and other ceramics. He bought unglazed china from Hutschenreuther and other manufacturers and provided the decorative artwork and the firing. Alan B. Reed in the Collector's Encyclopedia of Pickard China writes:

He Anglicized his first name early in his career, and by age 18 [in 1902] he was already decorating china professionally. In 1905 he married a girl his own age and they had two children, a boy and a girl. During the first seven or eight years of his career, he probably worked for one or more of the decorator wholesalers such as Pitkin & Brooks. Several antique dealers have insisted that he received his early training at Pickard. While not discounting these claims, diligent searches at antique shows and auctions and among private collections have turned up no example. Certainly, he was not one of Pickard's top artists nor was he ever Pickard's art director as a few dealers have claimed. By the time of the 1910 Census [under the name 'Asbjorn T. Olsen'] he describes himself as 'working on his own account', that is, he had his own china-decorating business in his home, and by 1914 he had opened a separate studio at 2520 North Milwaukee Avenue. Osborne did not use a backstamp on much of his product, being content to sign his name on the face of the piece, or in the case of all-over gold pieces, to scribe his signature on the bottom, In other cases, he used gummed foil labels that were easily removed after purchase. Therefore although he did employ other artists one cannot distinguish between unstamped pieces signed by an artist while working for Osborne and pieces which that artist may have made on a freelance basis. He does not seem to have encouraged - or perhaps even permitted - other artists to sign their work for him. An Osborne piece signed by anyone other than Osborne has yet to be found. Although he seems to have been devoted primarily to decorated china, he always characterized his studio as an 'art studio' and himself as simply an 'artist'. The studio was not a large one, and inasmuch as Osborne sold art supplies as well as decorated china from a store at the front of the building, he probably employed no more than six or eight china decorators at the studio's height. Nevertheless, he did employ some very good artists. (used with permission from Reed estate)

[edit] Death and burial

He died on January 10, 1971, and his funeral notice appeared in the Chicago Tribune on January 11, 1971. Osborne was buried on January 12 at Acacia Park Cemetery, Chicago.