American Art: Hassam and Whistler

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Questions and Answers

What was the primary reason Childe Hassam created a series of flag paintings in 1916?

To promote his art at exhibitions

In response to World War I (correct)

To commemorate the Fourth of July

To celebrate American independence

Where did Childe Hassam spend his summers during his artistic career?

New York City

Brooklyn

Holley House, Cos Cob (correct)

Isle of Shoals

What type of media did James Whistler NOT work with?

Etchings

Watercolor (correct)

Charcoal

Oil

What influenced James Whistler's painting style?

Japanese prints Signup and view all the answers

What significant event in Childe Hassam's life occurred in the year prior to him excluding a new factory in his work?

He moved to Cos Cob Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary focus of the Aesthetic Movement?

Art for art’s sake, focusing on beauty Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following painters is NOT associated with the Aesthetic Movement?

Claude Monet Signup and view all the answers

What design approach was often utilized by artists influenced by Ukiyo-e?

Elongated pictorial formats Signup and view all the answers

What kind of scenes is Whistler best known for painting?

Nocturnes or evening scenes Signup and view all the answers

Which of these titles did Whistler NOT use in his works?

Harmony in Color and Light Signup and view all the answers

What accusation did art critic John Ruskin make against Whistler?

Flinging a pot of paint Signup and view all the answers

What does the term 'floating world' refer to in the context of urban culture?

The entertainment districts of major cities Signup and view all the answers

What was the critical reception of Whistler's work displayed in the Royal Academy Exhibition of 1872?

Largely negative with harsh criticism Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary focus of Precisionism in art?

Emphasizing geometric, stylized forms Signup and view all the answers

Which year is associated with Charles Demuth's painting 'My Egypt'?

1927 Signup and view all the answers

What element does Demuth's 'The Figure 5 in Gold' primarily evoke?

The sights and sounds of urban life Signup and view all the answers

How did the term 'Precisionism' likely originate?

From a critic in the late 1920s Signup and view all the answers

What did Charles Sheeler focus on in his documentation of the Ford Motor Company's plant?

The machinery of the plant Signup and view all the answers

In what manner is Demuth's painting approach described?

Employs wordplay and object representation Signup and view all the answers

Which artistic movement's interests did Precisionism share, particularly regarding technology?

Futurism Signup and view all the answers

What characteristic is NOT associated with the surface of Precisionist paintings?

Visible brushstrokes Signup and view all the answers

What was a primary focus of Mary Cassatt's body of work?

Domestic scenes and mothers with children Signup and view all the answers

Which statement best reflects Childe Hassam's view on America compared to Paris?

America offered greater opportunities than Paris. Signup and view all the answers

How did Mary Cassatt’s social interactions with the Impressionists differ from the usual settings?

She met them privately instead of public spaces. Signup and view all the answers

What influence did Japanese prints have on artists like Mary Cassatt and Childe Hassam?

They incorporated unique perspectives and compositions. Signup and view all the answers

What approach did Childe Hassam primarily take towards painting commissions?

He largely avoided teaching or painting on commission. Signup and view all the answers

Which aspect of life did Childe Hassam often capture in his paintings?

Upper-class, sanitized visions of New York. Signup and view all the answers

What did Cassatt advocate for, regarding her status as an artist?

Women's rights and recognition in the art world. Signup and view all the answers

What themes did George Luks explore in his portraits of the urban poor?

True identity of individuals Signup and view all the answers

What did Childe Hassam mean by stating that he never desired to remain permanently in Paris?

He believed that American streets were equally interesting. Signup and view all the answers

What significant overtones are identified in George Luks's work Hester Street?

Anti-immigrant and anti-Semitic Signup and view all the answers

Which artist is known for their series of fight scenes, particularly in the work Stag at Sharkey's?

George Bellows Signup and view all the answers

What influence did Robert Henri have on Edward Hopper?

He encouraged realism in everyday life. Signup and view all the answers

At what age did Edward Hopper achieve significant commercial fame?

In his 40s Signup and view all the answers

What aspect of Hopper's figures is often highlighted by critics?

Their loneliness and isolation Signup and view all the answers

What artistic movement is Glackens most associated with after his time in France?

American Impressionism Signup and view all the answers

Who owned one of the most important collections of Modern art in Paris?

Gertrude and Leo Stein Signup and view all the answers

What was a significant influence on Georgia O'Keeffe's shift in artistic practice?

The revolutionary ideas of Arthur Wesley Dow Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes O'Keeffe's view of bones in her artwork?

They represent the eternal beauty of the desert Signup and view all the answers

What major exhibition took place on February 17, 1913, that significantly impacted American art?

The International Exhibition of Modern Art Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following artists was NOT mentioned as part of the Armory Show's sensational impact?

Monet Signup and view all the answers

How was the public's reaction to the Armory Show characterized?

A mix of horror and confusion Signup and view all the answers

What is a defining characteristic of the Dada movement?

Ridicule of contemporary culture Signup and view all the answers

Which prominent artist is associated with the Dada movement?

Marcel Duchamp Signup and view all the answers

What was a common reaction to the artworks displayed in the Armory Show?

They shocked and confused audiences Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Cecilia Beaux

Cecilia Beaux was a notable portrait painter.
Her reputation hasn't been widely recognized in American art texts.
She studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, refusing to take classes with Eakins.
During her career, she painted prominent figures of the American elite, including presidents, businessmen, and socialites.
Her goal was to surpass Sargent's reputation.
She was ambivalent about other artists she met.
She refused to paint "homelier" children of family and friends.

Henry Ossawa Tanner

Tanner studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, later relocating to Paris.
Paris provided an environment free from America's racial prejudice.
He focused on religious themes in his later years.
His work, such as "The Banjo Lesson" (1893) and "The Thankful Poor" (1894), subverts minstrel stereotypes.
"The Annunciation" (1898) exemplifies his later religious subjects.

Impressionism

Impressionism focused on the effects of outdoor, fleeting light.
Artists were not concerned with academic modeling techniques.
They aimed to convey the process of painting, rather than a smooth surface.
Portable metallic paint tubes were a new development.
Flat areas of color were placed next to each other without blending.

Complementary Colors

Complementary colors are opposite each other on the color wheel.
Examples are: blue & orange, violet & yellow, green & red, orange & blue, yellow & violet, red & green

Charles Baudelaire

Baudelaire, a prominent 19th-century French poet, introduced symbolist imagery.
His life and values are as important as his poetry.
Experiences: bourgeois values, drug use, relationships with other artists and poets.
"Modernity is the transient, the fleeting, the contingent; it is one half of art, the other being the eternal and the immovable.

Michel Eugène Chevreul

Chevreul formulated the law of simultaneous color contrasts.
Juxtaposing dissimilar colors affects how they appear.
Light and dark colors appear more intense when next to each other.
Chevreul also outlined the theory of successive contrasts.
Prolonged staring at a color results in the perception of its opposite.

Impact of Paris on Artists

Paris became a significant center of culture for artists.
This led to the "Bohemianization" of the city by artists like Thomas Hovenden.

Factors Contributing to American Impressionism

The number of American impressionist artists, providing exposure through exhibitions.
Inclusion of their works in annual exhibitions.
Training en plein air in art schools.
Emergence of American collectors willing to buy these works.
Americans adopting this style later than European counterparts.

Differences between French & American Impressionism

American artists avoided portraying lower class individuals.
American subjects were often more sanitized.
French impressionism often explored the dissolution of form, whereas Americans maintained a stronger academic tradition.

Mary Cassatt

Cassatt was an accomplished American artist and independent businesswoman.
She was fully involved in the French Impressionist movement starting in the late 1870s.
She was a strong willed expatriate, but considered herself an American.
Her father was opposed to her leaving for Paris, but she earned income from her art.
Degas connected her to the Impressionist group.
Cassatt focused on domestic subjects—mothers and children

Childe Hassam

Hassam, an American Impressionist, was a pioneer and prolific practitioner born in Dorchester.
His family descended from the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
He established his reputation in Boston between 1882 and 1886.
He studied in Paris from 1886 to 1889.
Became attracted to French Impressionism. Returned to New York, establishing lifelong residency.
Early work often tonal in color, his work changed in style when he moved to Paris (impressionist style).
He was committed to American art organizations.
His work focused on urban and natural landscapes.

James McNeill Whistler

Whistler, a notable artist, used musical terms in his artwork.
He sought to capture evening/night scenes, particularly London fog.
His work was initially met negatively by critics.
He was one of the foundational artists of the Aesthetic Movement, a philosophy that stressed art for its own sake.
He was rejected from the Royal Academy.

The Floating World

Refers to entertainment districts in large cities (such as Edo, modern-day Tokyo).
Later, it encompassed the entire world of urban fashion and pleasure.
Ukiyo-e art, including paintings, books, and prints, portrayed this.

Influence on Western Painters

Western artists incorporated elements like kimono-clad models, Asian props, and elongated pictorial formats.
Some artists embraced asymmetrical compositions and aerial perspectives.

The Ashcan School

Group of American artists who documented turn-of-the-century New York life.
Focused on realistic paintings and drawings of urban street scenes, etchings, and illustrations.

The Eight

A group of artists in the American realist tradition who worked together and shared a studio.
The Eight had differing aesthetics and styles from the rest of the American Scene, and were often opposed.

Unacceptable Subjects

Critique of the kinds of subjects that artists were painting.

Robert Henri

Henri studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts under Thomas Anshutz, who had previously studied with Thomas Eakins.
Learned technique in Paris and was influenced by Velázquez, Hals, and Goya.
Mainly painted portraits.
He envisioned American art for everyday experiences, not just privileged occasions.
His philosophy of "art for life's sake" is important for the Ashcan School.
His stay in La Jolla included portraits of the melting pot of Native American, Chinese-, Mexican-, and African-American influence.

Edward Hopper

He gained prominence in painting in the 1920s.
His paintings often feature New Yorkers
He recorded everyday activities and social life in New York City.
His style was realistic.
He gained commercial success past his forties.

Gertrude Stein

Stein's home in Paris housed many American and European artists, and was pivotal for the Modern Art movements coming to America.

Synchromism

This is a style where color is used in abstract paintings, and was pioneered by Morgan Russel and Stanton Macdonald-Wright.

Alfred Stieglitz

Pioneer of pictorial photography in America.
Publisher, gallerist and impresario who encouraged young modern painters in America.
Stieglitz opened the Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession.

John Marin

Marin, an accomplished jazz musician and watercolorist, used interdisciplinary artistic principles in his work.

Arthur Dove

Arthur Dove pioneered non-objective art through association with American Modernist painters, such as Alfred Stieglitz.
In 1910, he met Stieglitz who invited him to the Younger American Painters exhibition (included works of John Marin, Marsden Hartley, and Edward Steichen) at Stieglitz's 291 gallery.

Marsden Hartley

Studied at William Merritt Chase's School and the National Academy of Design.
Moved to Europe in 1912, becoming associated with Kandinsky and Franz Marc.

Georgia O'Keeffe

O'Keeffe was a notable American artist who focused on flowers, deserts, and the American Southwest.
She studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Art Students League of New York.
Her work was featured in Stieglitz's galleries.

The Armory Show

A ground-breaking exhibition of European Modernist art and its influence on American artists in 1913.
The show caused significant reaction and debate about the new styles of art.
The exhibition featured a mix of both established artists and up-and-coming artists from Europe.
The Armory Show was widely considered a significant moment in the history of American art.

DADA

A movement that emerged during World War I.
It featured antimilitarism, anti-aestheticism, and a rejection of established cultural norms. It was a reaction against the violence and futility of the war.

Readymades

This is a technique where artists used everyday objects to create artwork.
This challenges the traditional ideas about art.
Marcel Duchamp was an important figure in this movement and used the idea of making commonplace objects into art.

Stuart Davis

Davis was a magazine illustrator.
He experimented with strong colors.
His focus was on American life.
Recognized as influential to the Avant-Garde art scene.

American Scene Painting

A mainstream artistic approach in the 1930s, as a counter-response to European Modernism.
This style captured American life.

Grant Wood

Wood travelled to Paris in the 1920s .
His painting style was characterized by realism (and sometimes idealism)
His work is considered part of the American Scene Movement.
American Gothic, one of his most famous works.

Thomas Hart Benton

Benton was strongly influenced by American and European modernism.
He was an important figure within the American Scene Movement.
His work often explored themes of rural and urban life in the United States, and was often more romanticized.
His work often took on a regionalist motif.

Charles Demuth

Demuth was a precisionist painter
His work focused on industrial subjects.
Created portraits using symbolism and wordplay.

Charles Sheeler

He was a precisionist artist who worked from 1924-1929.
Focused mostly on industrial subjects such as the factories and the American industrial aesthetic.
His work on the Ford Motor plant was an example of this.

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Description

Explore the artistic journeys and influences of Childe Hassam and James Whistler in this quiz. Delve into Hassam's flag paintings from 1916, his summer residences, and the media Whistler chose to avoid. Test your knowledge of these iconic American artists and their significant life events.