Visiting the Bemelmans Gallery at Ocean House in Watch Hill, Rhode Island
- kerstinrao
- May 4
- 3 min read
by Kerstin Rao
Seeking an art adventure for myself, I spotted a gallery talk happening at Ocean House in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, featuring work by the great illustrator Ludwig Bemelmans. You may recall he created the Madeline series of children's books, but his life and career was much broader, featuring deep roots in hotels and hospitality.
What drew me to Ocean House, a good 2 hour drive from my home, was the chance to hear from Hilary Pierce (pictured with me, above.) She is the Curator of the Bemelmans Gallery at Ocean House and President of Art Collector's Athenaeum.
I arrived a few minutes before the lecture began. Ms. Pierce asked if anyone had thoughts before we started. I held up the book I brought with me.
"I'm a lifelong nerd, I'm afraid. I brought along the book I'm reading, Bemelmans La Bonne Table. It's a first edition, published in 1964 just 2 years after his death."
Ms. Pierce brightened and said, "Oh, that's a rare find! I want a copy for myself, actually."
I passed her the book. She said, "This is not nerdy at all. In fact, I assume everyone here has heard of Anthony Bourdain? Well, he admired Bemelmans, called him 'a badass of food writing,' and said La Bonne Table was the inspiration for his own book, No Reservations."
This was off to a terrific start! I smiled and sat down to enjoy her talk.
Most of her talk was proprietary; no photos or recording were allowed during her slide show. Ms. Pierce has cultivated a trusting relationship with Bemelmans' daughter, and we were all fortunate to hear the treasured stories.
The Bemelmans collection began when the Royce family, owners of Ocean House, had a vision of bringing in hospitality-related art. Three curators have helped to cultivate this collection.
Ludwig Bemelmans was born in Austria in 1898. One charming detail we learned was that he nicknamed his French nanny 'Gazelle' because he could not pronounce 'Mademoiselle.' Later, in the Madeline books, Miss Claudelle was based on this nanny, who inspired in him a great curiosity about Paris.
The Bemelmans had a family-owned hotel business in Meran, Austria. From an early age, Ludwig was conscripted to work menial jobs. At 16, he left and moved to New York. He wound up working for the Ritz Hotel from 1915 to 1931. It was there he began drawing the guests and staff, starting to discover his signature style.
We learned from Ms. Pierce that Ludwig took a grease pencil and drew on the ceramic wall tiles to entertain the cooks. Using the squares in a row as a way to sequence the cartoon stories, Ludwig expressed the passage of time across a grid, a technique that foreshadowed his later cartoon work.
The owners and staff at the Ritz encouraged his artistic development, and when he left service he began making illustrations for advertisements.
At the height of his career, he was publishing short stories, drawing covers for the New Yorker, and making creative ad drawings. In 1954, he used his 'Jello Money,' as referred to the payment for his Jello campaign, to buy a small café in Paris.
La Colombe was his dream, but it only stayed open 2 years. There are 2 murals he painted there that were retrieved, restored, and now can be seen at Ocean House.
These stories are but a few of the wonderful behind-the-scenes insights that Ms. Pierce shared with us. Her scholarship and passion for the work of Bemelmans is a true inspiration. I hope my piece here has intrigued you, and I highly recommend you create your own Art Adventure and attend the next time she offers a talk at Ocean House!
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