'Marty' Adkinson donates Thomas Moran painting to Toledo Museum of Art

Sheri Trusty
·3 min read
Marto “Marty” Atkinson taught art at Gibsonburg schools from 1969 to 2014, but her connection to the art world began long before that, when a painting by famed artist Thomas Moran hung in her childhood home.
Marto “Marty” Atkinson taught art at Gibsonburg schools from 1969 to 2014, but her connection to the art world began long before that, when a painting by famed artist Thomas Moran hung in her childhood home.

HELENA - When retired Gibsonburg art teacher Marto “Marty” Atkinson was growing up in Hudson, her mother kept a Thomas Moran painting hanging on the wall. Her mother was told over and over by so-called antique experts that the painting was worthless, but her mother insisted the painting had great value.

Atkinson, who lives in Helena now, doesn’t know much about the painting’s history, only that her maternal grandfather acquired it somehow in Philadelphia. When her mother died, Atkinson inherited the painting, and she always wondered if her mother’s intuition about it was correct.

Atkinson inherted painting artist whose work led to creation of Yellowstone National Park

In 2005, Atkinson found out her mother was right.

“My friend had tickets to Antiques Roadshow, and she called me and said, ‘Get the painting,’” Atkinson said.

They traveled to Cleveland where Antiques Roadshow was being taped, and, after staff saw what she brought, Atkinson was invited to be on the show.

“It was amazing to see behind the scenes. We were there all day, and they served us lunch,” she said.

Atkinson wasn’t told the value of the painting until she was on camera, and what they told her floored her. The painting, at the time, was worth $50,000. Today, it is worth even more.

“My mother would have been so pleased. She knew it had value,” Atkinson said. “It was such an experience. People have these things they are going to throw away because they think they have no value. They have them in their attic or their basement, and they find out on the show that they are worth a lot.”

When Marto “Marty” Atkinson was growing up, this painting by famed artist Thomas Moran hung in her family’s home. Although her mother was told many times that the painting had no worth, she believed it was valuable. Atkinson learned her mother was right when Atkinson was featured on Antiques Roadshow.
When Marto “Marty” Atkinson was growing up, this painting by famed artist Thomas Moran hung in her family’s home. Although her mother was told many times that the painting had no worth, she believed it was valuable. Atkinson learned her mother was right when Atkinson was featured on Antiques Roadshow.

Retired art teacher planned for painting to go to Toledo museum after she died

Initially, Atkinson made arrangements in her will to donate the painting to the Toledo Museum of Art after her death, but a group of friends had another idea. Each week, Atkinson meets at a coffee shop with Scott Michael, Ernst Hillenbrand, Bruce Hirt and Bob Taylor. As Atkinson sipped iced coffee one day and told them her plans, they gave her this advice: Why wait?

“They suggested I donate it now, while I’m still alive,” Atkinson said.

Moran traveled to Yellowstone with Cooke expedition

Thomas Moran (1837-1926) was an American painter whose career quickly advanced when Civil War financier Jay Cooke invited Moran to join an expedition team to the little-known Yellowstone region. Cooke was born in Sandusky and eventually built a summer home, Cooke Castle, on Gibraltar Island in Put-in-Bay harbor. The sketches of Yellowstone that Moran created during the expedition helped persuade Congress to establish the country’s first national park at Yellowstone in 1872.

When Atkinson contacted the Toledo Museum of Art about the possible donation, they sent an art expert to her home to review the painting. The museum was thrilled to accept a donation created by such a distinguished artist. The painting was restored at museum expense, increasing its value from $50,000 to $70,000.

Today, Toledo Museum of Art object No. 2021.16 is listed as “Landscape,” an oil on canvas by Thomas Moran that was, the collection data reads, “Given by Marto Atkinson in Memory of her Mother.”

“It’s the best thing. I can go see it. It was a really good decision to make,” Atkinson said. “It’s so amazing that it’s hanging at the museum. Who would think that would happen?”

Atkinson has visited the museum many times to see the painting that once hung in her family’s home.

“I always think of my mother,” she said. “She was right about how valuable it was, but people didn’t believe her. She would take a photo of it to antique shows, and people would say it’s not worth anything.”

Contact correspondent Sheri Trusty at sheritrusty4@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Confirmed Thomas Moran painting donated to Toledo museum