Remembered primarily as a watercolorist, the American painter John Marin III (1870-1953) emphasized the rhythmic structure of natural forms through abstraction.

John Marin was born on Dec. 23, 1870, in Rutherford, N. J. His mother died 9 days later. His father was forced to travel, so John grew up with his mother's relations in Delaware and New Jersey. Marin began to draw when he was 8. He attended public schools and spent a year at the Stevens Institute of Technology. His early works in watercolor, though able, do not anticipate later accomplishments. In 1889 he went to New York City, receiving a haphazard training in architecture as an apprentice in various offices. Despite this, in 1893 Marin opened his own office. He designed his own house in Union City as well as six others.

During this time Marin continued painting. When he was 28, he began classes at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in...