Many scholars and historians in the past, and now again, have acknowledged John Lloyd as an extraordinary talented artist. A good example of this is a letter received in 2008 from Dr. William Gerdts. Since Dr. Gerdts is considered America’s premier art historian, this particular letter indeed serves as a significant critique of Lloyd’s work.
Dr. Gerdts is Professor Emeritus of Art History, Graduate School of the City University of New York and Senior Advisor in American Art at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.
Dr. Gerdts has stated that he “enjoys immensely” both Lloyd’s landscapes and his city industrial scenes and that “Lloyd’s pictures are very strong and powerful, and wonderfully expressive especially in their coloration.” “Lloyd should certainly be represented in every public collection in Ohio and Western Pennsylvania.”
It is also Dr. Gerdts’ hope that Lloyd’s work “travels to other important institutes elsewhere.” Lloyd falls into comfortably, the category of a regional artist” and “for all I know perhaps the finest regional artist of his time in Northeast Ohio and the surrounding Pennsylvania area.”
Lloyd’s paintings “are superior works to much that was produced at the time (1920s and 1930s) and much that is being resurrected now.”
In 2008, Lloyd also received more notable attention at the national level. The American Art Review honored him in their 2008 April issue with a six page article along with representative prints of his work.
Dr. William Gerdts, Jr. (January 18, 1929 – April 14, 2020)
Professor of Art History, CUNY Graduate Center
Expert in American Impressionism