WOLFS Gallery in Beachwood, Ohio, is presenting "William Sommer: Visionary Modernist," a retrospective exhibition of Cleveland School artist William Sommer, on view through August 15. The show features more than 100 works from 1890 to 1945, drawn largely from the collection of retired Cleveland Museum of Art and Metropolitan Museum of Art curator Martin Lerner. Gallery owner Michael Wolf, a longtime advocate for the Cleveland School, organized the exhibition after nearly a decade of discussion and two years of planning. Sommer, a professional lithographer who painted landscapes and portraits of Northeast Ohio, never achieved national recognition despite praise from peers like poet Hart Crane and painter Charles Burchfield.
This exhibition matters because it shines a spotlight on the Cleveland School, a historically overlooked group of early 20th-century artists affiliated with the Cleveland Institute of Art. By showcasing Sommer's modernist interpretations of Ohio landscapes and his role as a host for creative gatherings at his Brandywine home, the show repositions him as a significant figure in American modernism. Wolf's efforts to elevate Sommer and the Cleveland School challenge the art world's tendency to focus on coastal centers, highlighting the importance of regional art histories and the role of dedicated gallerists in preserving local cultural heritage.