GOTTWALD, FREDERICK CARL (15 Aug. 1858-23 June 1941), painter, instructor at Cleveland School of Art (later CLEVELAND INSTITUTE OF ART), and sometimes referred to as the dean of Cleveland painters, was born in Austria to Frederick and Caroline Grosse Gottwald and came to Cleveland before his first birthday. His first artistic training was in 1874 with ARCHIBALD M. WILLARD, whom he joined in 1876 in founding the ART CLUB. Gottwald earned money to study art by painting landscapes in the cabins and salons of lakeboats and by gilding figureheads for boats. He studied at the Cooper Institute in New York City, the Art Students' League in Munich, and the Julien Academy in Paris. Returning to Cleveland in the late 1880s, he accepted a post on the staff on the newly formed School of Art, with which he would be associated for 41 years. He also taught at Western Reserve School of Design, the JOHN HUNTINGTON POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE, and Oberlin College. On 22 Nov. 1899, Gottwald married Myria Scott. He and his wife traveled, particularly in Europe, and many of Gottwald's landscapes are based on scenes in Italy, England, and Germany. In 1921 he spent his sabbatical year in Italy, moving there after his retirement in 1926. He returned to Cleveland for a short time in 1930 before retiring to California in 1932, where he spent the remaining years of his life. In 1919, Gottwald received the Penton Medal at the Cleveland Museum of Art MAY SHOW for his work entitled "The Thinker." He died in Pasadena, Calif.
