Thomas Eakins: Artist Out of His Time

He is regarded as one of the most important American artists. Still, most people don't know his name or his art work. He was featured on PBS' "American Masters." Yet, there was no stir or conversation about his art and biography. Who was this artist who mattered so much and so little all at the same time?

 

He was Thomas Eakins (1844-1916). (Notice that the dates of his lifetime coincide with the rise of the avant garde styles of Impressionism and Cubism.)In spite of the era, Eakins was true to his artistic instincts and that meant he was "deeply traditional."

Eakins was true to his believe in the beauty of nature especially the human form. If that meant going against the tide of popular techniques, so be it. That's not to say that he turned his back on what was new and exciting. (He was fascinated with photography and made many inventive contributions to motion studies.)It was more that Eakins disliked trends and affectations.

  He studied in Paris, Madrid and Seville. As Eakins traveled, he gained an appreciation of classical painters from earlier times whose portraitures explored the personality of the model.

Eakins' method was to paint portraits very slowly and meticulously. He spoke very little to his model. Most often, the person posing would relax and drop any facade. These portraits rendered a psychological realism not appreciated at the time - especially with all the interest in the new art movements. However, the passage of time changes many things.

Today, in the world of art, Eakins is highly regarded. In 1964, Tom Canaday, art critic for the New York Times wrote:

Today he seems to us to have recorded his fellow Americans with a perception that was often as tender as it was vigorous, and to have preserved for us the essence of an American life which, indeed, he did not idealize--because it seemed to him beautiful beyond the necessity of idealization.

All of the images on this blog are his paintings. What do you think of his work? Did you already know his name and art?  

 

 

Rosalba Carriera: Artistic Style Created by a Woman

In a time when women artist were ignored in the art world, there was an Italian woman, Rosalba Carriera (1675-1757), who was a famous pastel painter. Her fame was even greater than her pastels for she is considered the first woman in history to initiate a new style of art. At the time, it was called goût moderne. Today, we refer to the style as "rococo."

 

 

Carriera was born in Venice to a government clerk and a lace maker. Her early works were lace patterns, but sometime later she began painting miniature portraits for snuffboxes. 

 

 The beauty of her miniatures and the loose, spontaneous

brushstrokes of this new style led to fame and acceptance at the very highest levels. In addition to creating a style of painting, there were many more "firsts" from this talented and innovative artist.

 

 She painted finished portraits with pastels on paper - at a time when pastels were considered ideal for sketching only.  She promoted the use of tempera on ivory instead of using vellum. She was such a good artist that she was accepted into the French Royal Academy even though it had previously banned women. Here is a portion of a quote on one of her portraits:

".... Her delicate handling of the pastel medium beautifully captured the Rococo rage for pretty powdered faces and flowing fabrics. In A Young Lady with a Parrot, Carriera used a “dry-brush” technique, dragging her pastel lightly over a contrasting color, to suggest the gauzy material draped across the young lady and clear, wet-chalk accents to realize the lady’s floral hairpiece and jewelry."

In a time when women were only allowed certain crafts - none of which were considered for earning a wage, Carriera made a very fine living from the commissions she received from monarchy, wealthy patrons and collectors throughout Europe. The fame and demand for her portraits allowed her to be the sole support of her self, her mother and her unmarried sister! Needless to say, she inspired many other women artists. 

 

Sargent: The Painter Who Did It ALL

When I first visited the museum's exhibit of John Singer Sargent's (1856-1925) works, I anticipated the works would be excellent Edwardian-era portraits of the pretty (and rich) people. What really happened bowled me over so completely I had to come back for a second tour of the exhibit. I couldn't get enough of Sargent's body of work.

Sargent had mastery of all the paint media of his time - oil, watercolor, pencil and charcoal. He was also the master of any subject - people, architecture, animals, seascapes and landscapes. His best known art showed only a little of what he accomplished in his life: 900 oil paintings and over 2000 water colors, a countless number of charcoals and many murals.

Art was such a compulsion for him that while he was visiting and camping in America he painted finished water color paintings of the camp and surroundings!

Here are a few of his watercolor paintings:(click images to enlarge)





Sargent's reputation as a formal portraitist doesn't consider works such as these:






Sargent grew tired of the time it took to complete a formal oil portrait and chose to work in charcoal.





So, what do you think? Did you already know about Sargent's vast talent?