William M. Hoffman Jr. has spent some 25 years capturing the spirit
of Camden's former glory by painting the city's many historic
buildings. His goal: to preserve the rapidly disappearing landmarks of
a once-proud city.
Hoffman, a professor of fine arts, joined the Rutgers-Camden faculty
in 1967, when the city was still a healthy, if aging, manufacturing
center. It wasn't long, however, before Camden entered a period of
rapid decline that saw many of its buildings neglected, abandoned
and, ultimately, destroyed. In 1974, Hoffman decided to preserve the
city he had come to love by committing the details of its architectural
heritage to canvas.
Combining his detailed observations and artistic skills, Hoffman has
depicted the city's most interesting structures, many already
seriously deteriorated. "As buildings disappeared, I felt a need to
save them by transforming my perception into paintings people could
cherish for a lifetime," he explains. "Camden has changed in terms of
what is still standing, and a number of buildings have been torn
down, given new facades or boarded up."
Of the 36 buildings he has painted, seven have been demolished and
two are abandoned and scheduled for demolition. Numerous others
have been irrevocably altered or continue to deteriorate.
Hoffman has pursued his passion standing on the city's street
corners to catch the perfect angle of a building, climbing to the tops
of buildings' roofs, and roaming the city in all seasons and at various
times of day.
In spring 1983, for instance, he painted "View of Camden with City
Hall" from the roof of the RCA building as the afternoon light
shimmered down from the west. He perched atop the roof three hours
a day for more than a week. "Being seven stories up, I was able to
see a great deal more and see buildings off in the distance," he
says. "It was also exhilarating to paint outdoors in the clear, spring
air. I could concentrate on color and feel the air move. It's what
makes me live to paint."
The painting is a panoramic view predominantly focused on City Hall
as a strong vertical element in the composition, which emphasizes
the structure's prominence in the city's skyline. Press Hoffman to
choose a favorite from among his Camden works, and he'll identify
this piece. "I was trying to create a good composition that
communicates beauty through light and color," he says.
"There is a beauty in the historic architecture and its relationship to
its surrounding that can only be fully appreciated in a painterly
medium," he continues. "By painting, I can focus on the building
during a specific time of day when the light is hitting it at a certain
angle. I try to look at the changing environment and incorporate a lot
of different things into the composition. If I want to eliminate a
telephone pole or place a person into the composition, then that's
what I do."
As he works, Camden residents offer facts and reminiscences of
their city. "I learned more about particular neighborhoods from what
local folks would tell as they approached me while I was painting. In
essence, I learned the city's history through their words."
He learned, for instance, that the Walt Whitman House was isolated
by an elevated railroad and a fountain and appeared more like a small
village at the close of the 19th century. At the dawn of the 21st
century, the area is urbanized with a wide roadway -- Mickle
Boulevard -- that leads suburban visitors to the New Jersey State
Aquarium and the concert venue known as the E-Centre.
According to Hoffman, the city's wide variety of architectural styles --
including Victorian, Federal and Georgian -- reflect Camden's role as
the most important South Jersey transportation, industrial, financial
and cultural center east of Philadelphia from the 1750s through the
1950s. Many prominent industries such as Campbell Soup and RCA
Victor drove the growth of the city during these two centuries.
Cooper Street, for instance, displays several architectural influences:
City Hall is a fine example of 1920s art deco, the Walt Whitman
Center (previously the Cooper branch of the Camden Free Public
Library) provides a burst of classical revival, while a Gothic
revival-style church stands at the corner of Cooper and 5th streets.
David Tregunna, an arts journalist with the Big Issue and Bete Noire
in London, points out in a 1995 review of a London exhibit of work by
Hoffman and Camden colleague John Giannotti that Hoffman has a
"strong desire to record not only the appearance but the spirit of
Camden's historic architecture."
Of Hoffman's 1992 painting "4th & Market Streets with Campbell
Soup Towers," Tregunna writes, "Not only is the strange architecture
of these eccentric constructions a pleasing subject, but in this
picture Hoffman successfully combines two styles of painting. The
cars parked in the street are painted in almost primary colours,
showing the artist's interest in the emotional effect of the simplistic
colours of European Impressionism. The brushwork veers more
toward the vigour and freedom of Expressionism."
The bright day, Tregunna continues, "adds a playful, natural, joy of
being to the scene and the impression that the artist is enjoying
himself too." Today, the Campbell Soup Towers no longer exist.
In 1981, Hoffman painted a picture of the front of the Camden Free
Public Library in the late summer afternoon light. The library
symbolized the city's educational and social life. He stationed
himself across the street at an angle from the front of the
classical-style building. His goal was to capture the stately
architectural style as well as show the community use of the facility.
Unlike many of his paintings, this one has several images of people,
including children running in and out of the library. "I painted this one
freely and even sketched the figures freely. It was a rather fascinating
building."
Today, parts of the closed-down building are still standing. Sadly, the
roof is caving in and a rather large tree is growing inside the
structure. Hoffman admits he finds it dispiriting to see a structure so
full of human life one moment and so lifeless the next.
As with any personal effort, a bond forms between Hoffman and his
subjects. When one of those subjects is demolished, he experiences
a sharp sense of loss. The artist particularly mourned the
Reinboth-Hatch House, which was removed to make room for the
new federal court complex. "It was a beautiful piece of architecture
that illustrated the caliber of business that once existed on Cooper
Street," he says.
Not every story has an unhappy ending. Hoffman is especially
pleased that the RCA Tower's trademark stained-glass windows
depicting the famed image "His Master's Voice" have been restored.
Rutgers-Camden supported this effort.
Hoffman's mission is not complete. The Camden professor maintains
a written list of what he wants to paint next. Any building that looks
as though it might soon be destroyed quickly bumps to the top of the
list.
Yet every so often he breaks free of that systematic approach and
trusts his intuition. "Sometimes I paint a building simply because I
like it."
On exhibit
The paintings of William M. Hoffman Jr. were partially funded
through two Visual Arts Fellowship grants from the New Jersey
State Council on the Arts in 1980 and 1985. They have been
exhibited in numerous one-man shows, including an exhibition in
the gallery at St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London, England, as well
as numerous juried shows in New York City, Ohio, Pennsylvania,
New Jersey and Delaware. Currently, they can be viewed at the
Hopkins House Gallery of the Camden County Cultural and
Heritage Commission, 250 South Park Drive, Haddon Township,
N.J., through April 20. They will be displayed at the Markeim Art
Center Gallery, Lincoln and Walnut Avenues, Haddonfield, N.J.,
April 5 to May 17.
Many of the paintings can also be viewed on the Web at
www.camden.rutgers.edu/~wmhoffma.
A book of images
William M. Hoffman Jr. hopes to reach a large audience by
displaying his paintings at South Jersey galleries and in his new
book, "Camden: Historical Impressions."
The book documents the relationship among the history, architecture
and culture of the city of Camden. It also emphasizes the importance
of Camden in the development of the entire South Jersey region and
the necessity of preserving historical structures.
"I want to get this book distributed to historical societies, high
schools and colleges," says Hoffman. The book is crafted for
educational purposes and can be used for architectural walking tours
in the city.
Former employees of Campbell Soup and RCA will find the book an
interesting way to savor old memories. "Most people who worked
there may not have been aware of the historical significance of the
buildings that they saw. This is a good way for memories to
resurface by seeing these paintings depicted in book format,"
Hoffman says.
The book also contains commentary and essays by Roberta Tarbell,
an associate professor in the fine arts department on the Camden
campus; Howard Gillette, a professor of history on the Camden
campus; and Gail Greenberg, a South Jersey historian.
In her foreword to the book, Tarbell notes: "These disarming portraits
of Camden appear to be straightforward snapshots of city life, but
viewers are rewarded for seeking the multiple layers of meaning that
they contain."
Hoffman, she says, "challenges us to recognize the rich tapestry of
architectural history that exists and urges us to build what time and
indifference have destroyed in the once radiant city."
Gillette, in his essay on Camden's rich historical heritage, is similarly
impressed by the artist's achievement. "In these images a
remembered past and lived experience come together," he writes. "If
Camden has meant different things over time, it still evokes, even in
its troubled state, a powerful sense of place."