John Charles Van Dyke

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John Charles Van Dyke (1856–1932) was an American art historian and critic. He was born at New Brunswick, New Jersey, studied at Columbia, and for many years in Europe. He was admitted to the New York bar in 1877 but never practiced law. He was appointed librarian at Sage Library, New Brunswick in 1878, then in 1899 professor of art history in Rutgers College. He was elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters. His publications on art subjects include:

• How to Judge a Picture (1888)
• Art for Art's Sake (1893)
• A History of Painting (1894; new edition, 1915)
• Nature for its Own Sake (1898; fourth edition, 1906)
• Opal Sea: Continued Studies in Impressions and Appearances (1906)
• Studies in Pictures (1907)
• The Desert (1906)
• The Mountain (1916)

Professor Van Dyke wrote a series of critical guide books: New Guides to Old Masters. He edited Modern French Masters (1896); Old Dutch and Flemish Masters (1901); Old English Masters; and a series of histories covering the history of art in America.

John C. Van Dyke was the son of Judge John Van Dyke, and great grandson of John Honeyman, a spy for George Washington who played a critical role at the battle of Trenton.