He purchased several including a scene of two peasant girls carrying their harvest and waiting by the water for a boat.
Lafayette Swanton, was particularly fond of Farsky’s work. One collection he worked on belonged to a man named Julius Franc and was reported to be worth $75,000 (in today’s money that figure would exceed one million dollars).įarsky traveled between Chicago and Traverse City regularly during the four years he resided here because the market for his work was greater in the city. More than once, he brought a customer’s entire collection of works by “the Masters” to his home for repairs, touchups and cleaning. Skilled in cleaning and retouching fine art, he was often hired to care for the collections of wealthy Chicagoans. On several occasions they have walked the entire distance to Old MIssion, and return, and many choice paintings of the peninsula scenery were the result, which found ready sale in Chicago art houses.” “In company with his youngest daughter, many a long tramp has he taken in the woods about the city, the two finding the greatest delight in these walks. In the warm months, he spent many hours walking along the bay or in the woods looking for scenes to paint. 1908 fair and carnival where they drew hundreds who came just to see his work.įarsky purchased a couple of small farms in the area where he tried his had at fruit farming, but his main residence was a house at 904 Randolph St. Nineteen of his paintings were put display at the C.S.P.S. “Sheep in a Stable”, “A Night on Lake Erie”, “Scene After a Rain”, and “Scene After a Storm” were among the pieces he shared for all to admire and many came to see them. The exhibition included eight of his latest works. In 1906, several of his paintings were put on display at the Carnegie Library on Sixth street. “With all that he has accomplished, so retiring is the man that were one to meet him without knowing that is the artist, Farsky, one would never imagine that he was talking with a man who is known by his work on both sides of the water.” He willingly and often shared his work with the community. Described as a modest and gentle man, even with his fame as an artist, he never showed any arrogance.
The people of Traverse City seemed fascinated by Oldrich Farsky and his art. It was translated into English in 1977 and distributed locally. Farsky also provided illustrations for the article. The article contained the stories and photographs of Czech settlers who had arrived in the city as early as the 1850s. In 1907 he interviewed some of the Bohemian pioneers of Traverse City and wrote an article which was printed in the 1908 Amerikan Narodni Kalendar, an annual journal published in Chicago that featured biographies and stories of Bohemian immigrants in America. Because Traverse City had an active lodge, the painter felt at ease with people who shared his heritage and spoke the same language. The Czech-Slovak Protective Society, a Bohemian fraternal organization, had been established in Traverse City in the 1880s. During his time here, he found kinship within the large Bohemian community of Traverse City where he could easily communicate with those who belonged to the C.S.P.S club on Front St. He spoke four languages, but struggled with English. Having studied extensively in Europe, he had been exposed to the best art in the world. The Czech-Slovak Protective Society building, Front Street, Traverse City, undated. A life-sized portrait of General Sherman, completed in 1894, was for many years on display at the public library in Chicago. He is best known for his landscapes, but also created portraits. Coming to America in 1888, he settled in Chicago and established a studio where, for over sixteen years he created his popular paintings. Oldrich Farsky, a Servian-born artist, received his training beginning at age fifteen, first in Prague and Bohemia, then in Belgium, Germany, Italy and Paris. and moved his family from Chicago, where he had established quite a reputation for his fine art work. In 1906 another well known artist purchased a modest house on Randolph St. Among the best known are William Holdsworth, Fred Noteware, Ezra Winter and Maude Miller Hoffmaster. Traverse City has been home to many talented artists.
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