William Glackens
Encyclopedia
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
.
Glackens studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is a museum and art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1805 and is the oldest art museum and school in the United States. The academy's museum is internationally known for its collections of 19th and 20th century American paintings,...
and later moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he co-founded what came to be called the Ashcan School
Ashcan School
The Ashcan School, also called the Ash Can School, is defined as a realist artistic movement that came into prominence in the United States during the early twentieth century, best known for works portraying scenes of daily life in New York's poorer neighborhoods. The movement grew out of a group...
art movement
Art movement
An art movement is a tendency or style in art with a specific common philosophy or goal, followed by a group of artists during a restricted period of time, or, at least, with the heyday of the movement defined within a number of years...
. This group of artists, dubbed by the press "the Eight Independent Painters" or The Eight
The Eight
The Eight may refer to:*Ashcan School, an American school of painters*The Eight , a Hungarian art movement*The Eight ...
, chose to exhibit their works without pre-approval by the juries of the existing art establishment. He became known for his dark-hued paintings of street scenes and daily life in the city's neighborhoods. His later work was brighter in tone, and showed the influence of Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir was a French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionist style. As a celebrator of beauty, and especially feminine sensuality, it has been said that "Renoir is the final representative of a tradition which runs directly from Rubens to...
. During much of his career as a painter, Glackens also worked as an illustrator
Illustrator
An Illustrator is a narrative artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text...
for newspapers and magazines in Philadelphia and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Early life
Glackens was born in Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, where his family had lived for many generations. His father Samuel worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
. William had two siblings—an older sister Ada, and an older brother, cartoonist and illustrator Louis Glackens
Louis Glackens
Louis M. Glackens American illustrator, animator and cartoonist, was the brother of Ashcan School painter and illustrator William Glackens.Louis M. Glackens was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
. He graduated from Central High School in 1890. Throughout school he showed a great interest and aptitude for drawing and drafting.
Newspaper illustration and transition into painting
After school Glackens became an artist-reporter for The Philadelphia RecordThe Philadelphia Record
The Philadelphia Record was a daily newspaper published in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1877 until 1947. The Record was founded in 1877 as a one-cent daily newspaper...
. In 1892 he left that publication and began illustrating for the Philadelphia Press, where he covered various subjects. He then began taking evening classes at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, studying under Thomas Anshutz. Glackens was not a steady pupil, as art critic Forbes Watson would observe in 1923: "So much impression did the various instructors make upon him that today he can hardly remember who taught there when he was a pupil." John Sloan
John French Sloan
John French Sloan was an American artist. As a member of The Eight, he became a leading figure in the Ashcan School of realist artists. He was known for his urban genre painting and ability to capture the essence of neighborhood life in New York City, often through his window...
also attended the Academy, and he introduced Glackens to Robert Henri
Robert Henri
Robert Henri was an American painter and teacher. He was a leading figure of the Ashcan School in art.- Early life :...
. Henri began to arrange meetings at his studio to have discussions and give artistic criticism.
In 1895, Glackens traveled to Europe with several fellow painters, including Sloan and Henri. He first visited Holland where he studied the Dutch masters. They then moved to Paris where Glackens rented a studio for a year with Henri. Such a trip was common for artists of the time who wished to establish themselves in the artworld. It was Glackens’s first trip to Paris, but for the others it was a return trip. While in Paris, Glackens painted independently, but did not attend any schools. He returned to America in 1896 to work in New York. Later in his life, Glackens returned periodically to paint in Paris and the South of France.
Upon settling in New York in 1896, Glackens attained a job as an artist for the New York World. He got this position through his friend George Luks
George Luks
George Benjamin Luks, was an American realist artist and illustrator. His vigorously painted genre paintings of urban subjects are examples of the Ashcan school in American art.-Early life:...
who was also an illustrator. Glackens soon became a sketch artist for the New York Herald
New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
. He also worked for various magazines as an illustrator.
In particular, Glackens illustrated for McClure's Magazine, which sent him to Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
to make a series of drawings covering the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
. When he returned, Glackens continued to illustrate for magazines, although his real passion was in painting. In 1901, he exhibited at the Allen Gallery with Henri and Sloan, and began to gain notice for his artwork.
Glackens married Edith Dimock
Edith Dimock
Edith Dimock was an American painter, born in Hartford, Connecticut. She studied with William Merritt Chase at the Art Students League. In 1904 she married painter William Glackens after which "she devoted her time and energies to her family." She exhibited at the New York Armory Show of 1913...
in 1904. She was also an artist, and they lived together in New York.
Glackens and The Eight
Glackens soon began to associate with a group of artists now known as The Eight, or the Ashcan GroupAshcan School
The Ashcan School, also called the Ash Can School, is defined as a realist artistic movement that came into prominence in the United States during the early twentieth century, best known for works portraying scenes of daily life in New York's poorer neighborhoods. The movement grew out of a group...
. They included Robert Henri
Robert Henri
Robert Henri was an American painter and teacher. He was a leading figure of the Ashcan School in art.- Early life :...
, Arthur B. Davies
Arthur B. Davies
Arthur Bowen Davies was an avant-garde American artist and patron.-Biography:He was born in Utica, New York and studied at the Chicago Academy of Design from 1879 to 1882...
, Maurice Prendergast
Maurice Prendergast
Maurice Brazil Prendergast was an American Post-Impressionist artist who worked in oil, watercolor, and monotype...
, Ernest Lawson
Ernest Lawson
Ernest Lawson was a Canadian-American painter and a member of The Eight, a group of artists which included the group's leaders Robert Henri, Everett Shinn, John Sloan, Arthur B. Davies, Maurice Prendergast, George Luks, and William J. Glackens...
, William Glackens, Everett Shinn
Everett Shinn
Everett Shinn was an American realist painter and member of the Ashcan School, also known as 'the Eight.' He was the youngest member of the group of modernist painters who explored the depiction of real life...
, John French Sloan
John French Sloan
John French Sloan was an American artist. As a member of The Eight, he became a leading figure in the Ashcan School of realist artists. He was known for his urban genre painting and ability to capture the essence of neighborhood life in New York City, often through his window...
, and George Luks
George Luks
George Benjamin Luks, was an American realist artist and illustrator. His vigorously painted genre paintings of urban subjects are examples of the Ashcan school in American art.-Early life:...
. These men did not create the name themselves, but after their exhibition of 1908, it became their unofficial title. They decided to hold a separate exhibition after being continually rejected from the National Academy’s events. It was a way to reject the controlling group's rigid definition of artistic beauty. Their exhibit was well received and was sent on tour as a traveling show curated by Sloan. They gained national recognition and were invited to exhibit at many institutions. Most of the Eight also participated in the "Exhibition of Independent Artists" in 1910, an attempt to break down the exclusivity of the academy.
The Eight are known for their realist style and are considered key figures in the realist movement. They depicted urban scenes and welcomed artistic freedom. Like Glackens, they were journalists, writers, or illustrators before becoming painters. They chose to continue with the style of illustration, which emphasized immediacy as well as community and interaction. Glackens was an integral part of the group. The "genre aspects" of Ashcan art are evident in his work of the time.
Later work and years
By 1910 Glackens began to focus on a "highly personal coloristic style" instead of Ashcan ideas. His work was often compared to that of RenoirPierre-Auguste Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir was a French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionist style. As a celebrator of beauty, and especially feminine sensuality, it has been said that "Renoir is the final representative of a tradition which runs directly from Rubens to...
, to the point that he was called the "American Renoir". It is said that “although he identified with The Eight, who struggled to infuse a lusty spirit into a nearly moribund American art, it was for a brief time only, because his art could not develop within the limits of Ashcan philosophy.” While Glackens continued to paint in a realist style emphasizing a single moment in time and real people, his art experienced a shift that distanced him from his fellow Ashcans.
About this time, his high school classmate Albert C. Barnes
Albert C. Barnes
Albert Coombs Barnes was an American chemist and art collector. With the fortune made from the development of the antiseptic, anti-blindness drug Argyrol, he founded the Barnes Foundation, an educational institution based on his private collection of art...
began to study and collect art. He commissioned Glackens to buy him some "modern" works while on a trip to Paris. These 20 paintings, which included works by Cézanne, Renoir, Manet, and Matisse, formed the core of what became the Barnes Foundation collection.
In 1916, Glackens served as the president of the newly-founded Society of Independent Artists
Society of Independent Artists
Society of Independent Artists was an association of American artists founded in 1916 and based in New York.Based on the French Société des Artistes Indépendants, the goal of the society was to hold annual exhibitions by avant-garde artists. Exhibitions were to be open to anyone who wanted to...
. He continued to travel to France between 1925 and 1935 to study the work of the Impressionists, the Post-Impressionists, and Les Nabis
Les Nabis
Les Nabis were a group of Post-Impressionist avant-garde artists who set the pace for fine arts and graphic arts in France in the 1890s. Initially a group of friends interested in contemporary art and literature, most of them studied at the private art school of Rodolphe Julian in Paris in the...
, the styles of which he adapted into his work. His paintings received gold medals from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in 1933 and again in 1936.
Death and legacy
Glackens died in Westport, ConnecticutWestport, Connecticut
-Neighborhoods:* Saugatuck – around the Westport railroad station near the southwestern corner of the town – a built-up area with some restaurants, stores and offices....
on May 22, 1938. His legacy is greatly linked to that of the Eight. Although having distanced himself from some of their ideals, he continued to be considered an integral part of the realist movement in American art.
Style and subject matter
Glackens's subject matter and style changed throughout his life. Influenced by the ImpressionistImpressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s...
work he saw during his stay in Europe, Glackens’s early work uses "dark, dramatic colors applied vigorous in slashing brushstrokes." He depicted scenes of urban life in Paris and its suburbs. He continued this style and subject matter for some time until he began to break away from The Eight. At that point his most common subject matter was landscapes, especially beach scenes. Later Glackens became best known for his portraits, and late in his life he focused on still lifes. Despite the changing subject matter, Glackens’s work always emphasized the reality of life and also the happiness. He "sought beauty and found it where conventional eyes saw ugliness." Watson asserts that Glackens focused on color because "the color of the world makes him thoroughly happy, and to express that happiness in color has become his first and most natural impulse." He painted because he wanted to show the beauty of the world. His paintings are "haunted by the spectre of happiness, obsessed with the contemplation of joy."
Glackens is often criticized for his similarity to Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir was a French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionist style. As a celebrator of beauty, and especially feminine sensuality, it has been said that "Renoir is the final representative of a tradition which runs directly from Rubens to...
. Some even call him an imitator. After the Exhibition of Independent Artists in 1910, Glackens’s style shift was quickly compared to Renoir’s style. It is said that during the 1920s and 1930s “his once vigorous artistic personality had been blunted by too close imitation of Renoir’s late style.” Glackens’s interest in color likens him most to Renoir; Watson claims Glackens to have a “rich palette akin to Renoir’s to express his pure delight in color.”
Glackens is compared to Pascin
Pascin
Julius Mordecai Pincas, known as Pascin, Jules Pascin, or the "Prince of Montparnasse", was born in Bulgaria to parents of four ethnicities. During World War I, he worked in the United States. He is best known as a painter in Paris, where he was strongly identified with the Modernist movement and...
because they were both “among the best illustrators of their day.” They both used life for their subjects, and also cared about portraying how they view the world. But one strong similarity is the way they both are able to see and emphasize the “humorous aspects” of life.
Analysis of artworks
'Nude with Apple' is a signature piece of Glackens’s career. It is said to be the turning point in his style and his division with The EightThe Eight
The Eight may refer to:*Ashcan School, an American school of painters*The Eight , a Hungarian art movement*The Eight ...
. It is a portrait of a model resting on a couch, holding an apple. Critics have called in a “modern Eve” because of its reference to the fruit. It is the notable attention paid to bright, vivid colors that sets this painting apart from those of The Eight.
It is interesting to compare the finished work to an earlier study in pastel. His method of working would include numbers of sketches where he would focus on each element of the composition.
Chez Mouquin is arguably Glackens’s most celebrated painting. It is set in the well-known restaurant regularly visited by many of Glackens' associates. The painting is a portrait of James B. Moore, who was a restaurant owner. It depicts him and Jeanne Mouquin at a table. He is drinking, while the lady is turned away looking uninterested. They are reflected in the mirror behind them, along with a large crowd of people in the room. The painting is often compared to those of Degas, but “the sense of despair in Degas’s picture is replaced in the Glackens by a buoyant 'joie de vivre'.” He portrays realist subject matter, the urban life, but does so with happiness and humor.
Portrait of the Artist’s Wife portrays Edith Glackens seated next to a fruit still life. It is one of many of Glackens’s portraits. He also painted likenesses of several members of the Eight
The Eight
The Eight may refer to:*Ashcan School, an American school of painters*The Eight , a Hungarian art movement*The Eight ...
. The portrait does not idealize Edith. Rather he “frankly acknowledges her pert nose and small chin.”
Collectors
Collector Albert C. BarnesAlbert C. Barnes
Albert Coombs Barnes was an American chemist and art collector. With the fortune made from the development of the antiseptic, anti-blindness drug Argyrol, he founded the Barnes Foundation, an educational institution based on his private collection of art...
bought many of Glackens’s best paintings, some of which are exhibited by the Barnes Foundation in Merion. They were classmates at the academic Central High School (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), a school which also produced John Sloan and Thomas Eakins
Thomas Eakins
Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins was an American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator...
.
Exhibitions
- The Eight Exhibition, 1908, Macbeth Gallery,New York
- Exhibition of Independent Artists, 1910, traveling exhibit
- The Armory Show, 1913, New York
- City Life Around the Eight, 2000, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY
- Scenes of American Life: Treasures from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2002, Dayton Art Institute
Selected works
- Autumn Landscape, ca. 1895. Oil on canvas
- Portrait of the Artist’s Wife, 1904. Oil on canvas
- Chez Mouquin, 1905. Oil on canvas
- Maypole, Central Park, 1905. Oil on canvas
- Nude with Apple, 1910. Oil on canvas
- March Day, Washington Square, 1912. Oil on Canvas Image
- Sledding, Central Park, 1912. Oil on canvas
- Bathing at Bellport, Long Island, 1912. Oil on Canvas Image
- Beach Scene, New London, 1918. Oil on canvas
- Woman in Blue Hat, ca. 1918. Oil on canvas
- Flowers in a Quimper Pitcher, ca. 1930. Oil on canvas
- The Soda Fountain, 1935. Oil on canvas
The country's largest collection of his art is housed at the Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale
Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale
The Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale is an art museum in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Originating in 1958 as the Fort Lauderdale Art Center, the museum is located in a modernist building designed by Edward Larrabee Barnes. The current building was constructed in 1986, with a wing added in 2001...
, which has an entire wing dedicated to his works, and which holds a total of approximately 500 Glackens paintings in its permanent collection.