Janet Gaylord Moore
Janet Gaylord Moore was an American painter and art educator deeply engaged in exploring and sharing the art of China and Japan. Born in 1905 in Hanover, New Hampshire, she was the daughter of an academic father and a librarian mother. Moore pursued her education at Vassar College and the Art Students League in New York City, leading to a successful career that included teaching art at various institutions, such as Miss Hewitt's Elementary School and the Laurel School in Ohio. During World War II, she contributed to production illustration for an aircraft company, showcasing her versatility in the field.
Later, she held several roles at the Cleveland Museum of Art, including supervisor for clubs and adult groups, associate curator, and curator in art history and education. In addition to her curatorial work, she taught as an adjunct professor at Case Western Reserve University. Moore also turned her focus to writing, producing three notable nonfiction works about art, with her first book receiving a Newbery Honor. She passed away in 1992 in Maine, leaving behind a legacy of artistic exploration and education that continues to inspire.
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Subject Terms
Janet Gaylord Moore
Author
- Born: June 2, 1905
- Birthplace: Hanover, New Hampshire
- Died: December 5, 1992
- Place of death: Deer Isle, Maine
Biography
Janet Gaylord Moore’s life was devoted to exploring the world of art, particularly that of China and Japan, and sharing her knowledge and insights with young people. She was a painter who lived at various times in Paris, Rome, and Beijing, but most of her work was done in the New York City and Cleveland areas.
She was born in 1905, in Hanover, New Hampshire, the daughter of Frank Gardner Moore, who was a professor, and Anna B. (White) Moore, a children’s librarian. She received a B.A. from Vassar College in 1927, and also studied at the Art Student League in New York City. She exhibited her paintings in both group and solo exhibitions.
For many years, she was an art teacher, beginning by teaching art at Miss Hewitt’s Elementary School, a private school in New York City, from 1939 to 1943. During World War II, she worked for two years (1943-1945) in production illustration at Chance Vought Aircraft in Stratford, Connecticut, before returning to teaching art and serving as head of the department at the Laurel School, a private high school in Shaker Heights, Ohio, from 1947 to 1960.
In the latter half of her life, Moore moved to Cleveland, where she began work in a variety of positions at the Cleveland Museum of Art and at Case Western Reserve University. She served as supervisor for clubs and adult groups at the museum from 1961 to 1967, became associate curator from 1967 to 1972, and was curator in the department of art history and education in 1972. Concurrent with her various positions at the Museum, she taught as an adjunct assistant professor at Case Western Reserve University from 1967 to 1972.
Moore turned her attentions to writing late in life, publishing three nonfiction works on art. Her first book, The Many Ways of Seeing: An Introduction to the Pleasures of Art, written for very young children, was a Newbery Honor Book in 1970. Her 1977 pamphlet An Introduction to the Art of Japan in the Cleveland Museum of Art served as a guide to the galleries of the Museum, and her final work, 1979’s The Eastern Gate: An Invitation to the Arts of China and Japan, was written for young adults. Moore died in Maine in 1992.