Winter 2016

2016 Antiques & Fine Art 121 W illiam Merritt Chase (1849–1916) is arguably one of America’s most distinguished artists. His career dates from the end of the Civil War to the stirrings of the First World War. In art historical terms, it spans the tail end of the Hudson River School to the nascent beginning of abstraction. Although Chase respected his artistic elders, his work looked forward to new ways of expression, best seen in the flowering of Impressionism. He was also an internationalist, embracing Western-centered art, which was beginning to incorporate a world view, especially as it related to the art of Japan. At the same time, he was not wedded to any dictates defining his era. Modern art is a moveable descriptive, and it is clear that during his lifetime Chase was one of the great American modern masters. He passed the “modern” baton to others as a teacher. Believing it was important to inspire artists to find their own voices, students included Georgia O’Keeffe, Marsden Hartley, Charles Demuth, Arthur B. Carles, Charles Sheeler, and Joseph Stella. An exhibition currently at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, William Merritt Chase , is the first retrospective of the artist’s work in more than three decades. Approximately eighty of Chase’s finest works, in oil and pastel, offer a fresh perspective on Chase’s role in shaping American art. The following provides some insight into the formation of the exhibition. William Merritt Chase (1849–1916) Ready for the Ride, 1877 Oil on canvas, 54 x 34 inches Henry H. and Zoe Oliver Sherman Fund; Photograph © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston William Merritt Chase (1849–1916) Lydia Field Emmet, 1892 Oil on canvas, 72 x 36⅛ inches Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the artist; courtesy, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston