William James
Glacens

United States • 1870−1938
William James Glackens: (William James Glackens March 13, 1870, Philadelphia, PA – may 22, 1938, westport, Connecticut) is an American artist and Illustrator, realist, one of the founders of the School trash cans.

Features of the artist William James Glackens: His early works are distinguished by a pronounced realism, muted dark tones and expression. Throughout his life he preferred the image of the simple life of citizens, their guests and field trips. For many years he devoted to the illustrations, worked in Newspapers and magazines in Philadelphia and new York. In recent years has been influenced Renoirthat is reflected in the special flavor of his work and selection of topics: portraits, and later still lifes.

Famous paintings of William James Glackens: "Nude with Apple", "Italo-American celebration Washington square", "Saturator", "Mukena".


William Glackens was born in Philadelphia, where for several generations his family lived. He had an older sister, IDA and brother, Louis, who was known as a cartoonist and Illustrator. William was lucky enough to finish one of the best schools in the city, during training in which he always showed interest and ability in graphics and drawing.

William Glackens: from the newspaper in the picture


Upon graduation, Glackens began working as an artist-reporter for Philadelphia daily newspaper "the Philadelphia Record". He soon found another job in the "Philadelphia Press". This time Illustrator goes to evening classes at the Pennsylvania Academy of the fine arts, where he teaches Thomas Pollock Anshutz— the representative of American realism. In fact, the future artist studied with many masters. Connoisseurs of his biography noted that it is unlikely he would be able to remember all of my teachers.

The future American impressionist John Sloanhe studied with Pakinam, and it was a big luck. The young Illustrator was presented Robert Henry— realist and meaningful person in the art circles of Philadelphia. Henry arranged the regular meetings of artists in the Studio: conversations on art, alcohol and, of course, mutual art criticism. He encouraged young authors to come together to read the poetry of Walt Whitman, Emerson, and arguments about art William Huntand all that he believed necessary to create a new direction in American art. These meetings became the basis of what later will be called the ashcan School — fresh flow, rejected salon academism, and calling to portray life as it is.

In 1895, Glackens is sent to travel around Europe, studying the art of the old masters, especially giving time to the Dutch painting. Scenic innovations do not sidestep American, and rented a Studio in Paris, he gladly met with impressionism and post-impressionism. Here, he takes no lessons, but working independently, making sketches of cafes, shops, quays and streets of Paris. Such a trip to Europe was the norm for American artists overseas masters considered more primitive and provincial. They felt the need to assert themselves, to realize the experience of the past and out to meet future transformations in the art. Living in Paris made Glackens a real fan of the homeland of the Impressionists, throughout his life he periodically returned here and wrote in the capital and in the South of France.

After returning to America, Glackens gets the position of the artist in "New York World" thanks to his friend, colleague and participant in the artistic meetings in Philadelphia George Laxou.

The next spot is a mass-circulation newspaper "New York Herald", which he combined with work in several magazines. For example, "McClure''s Magazine", which started to develop detective case in journalism, sent him on a business trip to Cuba for coverage of the course of the Spanish-American war. Glackens, not just sketched in the rear, but went to the front and even had malaria.

Basic earnings Glackens these years are illustrations in magazines and Newspapers, he has also created a series of illustrations for short stories and novel by Abraham Kagan about Jewish life, stories of the Wild West and historical novels. But the real thrust he felt only painting. And here at the Allen Gallery in new York exhibited his paintings along with works by Henry and Sloan. Colleagues and the press greeted him positively, seeing in it a promising author. Paintings from the busy streets, people, resting in parks and on beaches became popular and recognizable.
In 1906 Glackens choose a member of the National Academy of design.

James Glackens and his family life


In 1904 Glace marries American artist Edith Dimock (Dimock Edith, 1876-1955). Edith received his art education in new York against the wishes of their parents, it also exhibited her work.

Glacken and Dimock had two children — a boy and a girl. Wife and daughter have often served as models in his paintings, and his son would later write a biography of his father-the artist. Despite the family life, the wife continues to paint, exhibiting his work and drawings in watercolor, for which he receives a number of positive reviews. Their pictures after the wedding, she signed her maiden name.

Writer and artist Jerome Myers, Recalling his visits to Glackens, wrote that for him it was a true pleasure to be in a circle of close-knit family, surrounded by works of art, with cute mistress Edith and merry children. He noted that the whole atmosphere was impregnated with a special spirit of new York which now you can find less and less.

Contemporaries spoke of Glucose as a good husband who valued and loved his family especially stood out against his supporters, allowing themselves not to burden the knot a permanent relationship.

William James Glackens and "Eight"


"Eight" (The Eight) is a group of eight artists, many of whom, as well as, Glackens had a direct relation to the ashcan School. In the company were: Robert Henry, Arthur Davis, Maurice Prendergast, Ernest Lawson, Everett ShinnJohn Sloan and George Lux. All of these artists one way or another were related to the printed word: they were writers, journalists, illustrators.

All their attempts to arrange an exhibition in the National Academy of design ended in failure, so in 1908 they open to the public their works in the gallery Macbeth. The name "Eight" was not their own choice of group members, it "latched on" to them through the press. Oddly enough, the event was a success, and the exhibition traveled to many States. Soon the artists were able to participate in official exhibitions. Following a major exhibition occurred in 1910.

"Eight", which is Glackens was a key figure, prefer to portray the urban environment, is not characterized neither courtesy nor high style: parks, streets, shops, the town's sandy beaches. Was hailed creative freedom. They are not attracted to modernist currents, but worried the real thing: what was here and now.

From the "Trash can" by Renoir


Glackens continued to illustrate Newspapers and magazines, but he confessed that he did it without desire, trying to find the time for what he really was interested in — painting. Only in the 1920s, he would be able to support my family likes. Print journalism will serve a good service to his pictorial genius: he captures the smallest details, gestures and accidents that made his paintings are direct and full of life.

In 1912, the artist is again in Paris on behalf of his friend, the art collector albert Barnes, where he takes on 20 of the paintings of the Impressionists, including Renoir, Manet, Matisse, Cezanneand others. The paintings formed the basis of the exhibition, which alarmed the representatives of the "Eight", which he considered destructive to American realism.

"Personal coloristic style" - it was a new idea and the purpose of Glackens. His abrupt change of "reference" and reference to the works of Renoir provoked a storm of criticism. One of the comments, Glackens reasonably noticed: "Can you think of a person better than Renoir?". In the period between 1925 and 1936 he spent a lot of time in France, where he studied the art of the Impressionists and post-Impressionists. His son writes: "Paris has always been a favorite town of my father, and France — the spiritual home". He increasingly distanced himself from his comrades.

His work lost its former muted and expressive brush strokes. Now you can enjoy the bright colors that he used throughout, as noted by the art historian Watson, "expressing the delight of pure color". For this unusual for overseas viewers a flavor of Glackens called the "American Renoir", despite the fact that critics have found is not significant, but a noticeable difference in a softer color and less sensitive images. His art ceased to be social, it did not reflect such important milestones for America, as the Great depression, and soon became a refuge from the surrounding troubles.

In recent years, the artist becomes the winner of many awards, receives the gold medal for his work, and five years before the death of Glackens declare academician.

Author: Lyudmila Lebedeva





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