James Henry Cloetingh was born into a family of Dutch-Americans on July 3, 1894, in Muskegon, Michigan. As a young man he worked as the advertising manager for the Muskegon Chronicle. In his spare time he was secretary of the Muskegon Kennel Club. In 1923, in Muskegon's first championship dog show, Cloetingh's airedale, named Guardian Trust, took home the best of show honors.
By 1930, Cloetingh was living in South Bend, Indiana, and operating a commercial art studio with a partner. Their firm was called Cloetingh and De Man Studio. I don't know who his clients would have been--perhaps businesses in northern Indiana and the Chicago area. In addition to being a commercial artist, Cloetingh was a painter. I have found two of his pictures. Both are of boats. Cloetingh's subject should come as no surprise considering he was born on and lived close to Lake Michigan most of his life.
Cloetingh exhibited in the Hoosier Salon in 1961. He died four years later in June 1965 at the age of seventy.
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| An oil painting (top) and a watercolor (bottom) by Michigan and Indiana artist James H. Cloetingh (1894-1965). |
Text copyright 2012 Terence E. Hanley
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