Joseph Meierhans, portrait by Ben Solowey, photo courtesy of The Studio of Ben Solowey, Bedminster, Pennsylvania

Some say that artists carry things too far, but we know that the world would stand still if no one ventured beyond the limits of the familiar.
-Joseph Meierhans

Joseph Meierhans first came to New York in 1917 to work for a Swiss textile mill. Already successful in the textile design field, he settled in the United States. After 15 years in New York, he moved to Bucks County in 1932.
His early work was in watercolor and oil. He primarily painted landscapes, sketches of his native Switzerland, as well as American east coast scenery. His professional career as a textile designer led to a concern for texture and color. His later work moved to the abstract, which became his preferred style. He derived his inspiration as a painter from nature and scenes from everyday life. His work was strongly concerned with composition, form and color. He was also the owner and founder of Meierhans Gallery in 1956, which became a showplace for Delaware Valley artists.