Frank C. Kirk (1889-1963)
Frank C. Kirk was born in the city of Zitomir in South Russia. As one of seven children in a family of meager means, Kirk began working at the age of twelve as an assistant to a house decorator. The youth found inspiration in the despondent yet picturesque revolutionary Russia through his drawing, though he was unable to take formal art instruction in his native country. Indeed, the young Kirk dreamed of entering the Kiev Art School; however, as a Jewish boy, he was forbidden residence in the holy city of Kiev.
The opportunity to study and travel arose after Kirk’s parents had immigrated to America, and settled in Philadelphia. There, Frank Kirk enrolled in the Graphic Sketch Club and the Industrial Arts School. Instructors at these institutions perceived great promise in the young artist and helped Kirk to gain entrance into the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.
At the Academy, Kirk studied with Hugh Breckenridge, Daniel Garber, Cecilia Beaux, and Philip Hale. In 1925, he accepted a scholarship for study in Europe. After his travels, Kirk would return to Philadelphia with rich new visions to establish an artist’s studio that would soon become well regarded.
Frank C. Kirk found his inspiration in the great variety of ethnicity in America, and designed each individual portrait with a distinction respective of the personality.
Frank C. Kirk’s various memberships include the Society of Independent Artists, Salons of America, National Academy of Design, Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts, Society of Washington Artists, Artists Equity Association, Audubon Artists, Boston Art Club, and the Copley Society.
He designed murals at the Victoria Theatre in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania; the Royal Theatre, Felton Theatre, and the Bronson Theatre in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and the Grand Theatre at Norfolk, Virginia. The artist has exhibited nationally and internationally, with many one-man exhibitions. He passed away in New York City in 1963.