Zoe Dusanne

 ( 1884 Births ) 

In 1912, she moved to Seattle, where she operated a beauty salon.Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, p.11, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011 In 1928, she moved to New York City and began collecting works by modern abstract artists such as Paul Klee, Piet Mondrian, Stuart Davis, Jean Arp, and Giorgio de Chirico. On her return to Seattle in 1942, she began promoting advanced contemporary art, which had not previously been widely exhibited in the Pacific Northwest.Paul Horiuchi: East and West, p.37, by Barbara Johns; University of Washington Press, 2008Life magazine sheds limelight on Northwest School painters on September 28, 1953, by Paula Becker and Priscilla Long; http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=5342 She loaned pieces from her growing collection to the Seattle Art Museum and the Henry Art Gallery,Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, p.42, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011 and in 1950, opened the Zoë Dusanne Gallery.Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, p.53, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011Paul Horiuchi: East and West, p.37, by Barbara Johns; University of Washington Press, 2008

She was an avid supporter of Northwest-based artists such as Guy Anderson, Kenneth Callahan, Morris Graves, Paul Horiuchi, Philip McCracken, Mark Tobey, and George Tsutakawa, and played an important role in bringing national attention to the 'Northwest School'.Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, pp58-59, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011The Eighth Lively Art: Conversations with Painters, Poets, Musicians, and the Wicked Witch of the West, pp107-108, by Wesley Wehr; University of Washington Press, 2000 Her gallery was the first in North America to mount shows by Japanese artist Yayoi KusamaZoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, p.99, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011The Eighth Lively Art: Conversations with Painters, Poets, Musicians, and the Wicked Witch of the West, p.111, by Wesley Wehr; University of Washington Press, 2000 and French artist/poet Henri Michaux,Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, pp74-75, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011The Eighth Lively Art: Conversations with Painters, Poets, Musicians, and the Wicked Witch of the West, p.111, by Wesley Wehr; University of Washington Press, 2000 and she was an early exhibitor of works by Sam Francis,Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, p. 83, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011The Eighth Lively Art: Conversations with Painters, Poets, Musicians, and the Wicked Witch of the West, p.111, by Wesley Wehr; University of Washington Press, 2000 Paul Jenkins,Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011 Karl Otto Götz,Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, p.87, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011 John Franklin Koenig,Iridescent Light: The Emergence of Northwest Art, by Deloris Tarzan Ament; University of Washington Press, 2002 and many others.

In 1953, largely as a result of Dusanne's efforts, Life magazine ran a major article on the "Mystic Painters of the Northwest", which propelled Tobey, Graves, Callahan, and Anderson to national prominence.Life magazine sheds limelight on Northwest School painters on September 28, 1953. HistoryLink.org Essay 5342, by Paula Becker and Priscilla Long, 2003; http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_ id=5342 retvd 6 9 14

In 1959, the custom-built Zoe Dusanne Gallery was demolished for construction of the Interstate 5 freeway; a second location lasted until 1964, at which time Dusanne retired.The Eighth Lively Art: Conversations with Painters, Poets, Musicians, and the Wicked Witch of the West, p.114, by Wesley Wehr; University of Washington Press, 2000

She died in Seattle on March 6, 1972.Zoë Dusanne: An Art Dealer Who Made a Difference, p.121, by Jo Ann Ridley; Fithian Press, 2011