Hassam, Childe

Hassam, Childe (Frederick Childe Hassam) (chīld hăs`əm), 1859–1935, American painter and printmaker, b. Boston, studied in Paris. With their flickering light and airy palette, Hassam's sprightly landscapes, cityscapes, and interiors show the strong influence of late 19th-century French painting, and he is probably the best known of America's impressionists. Examples of his work include many scenes on the Isles of Shoals and July 14th, Rue Daunou, 1910 (1910), The New York Window (1912), The Church at Gloucester (1918), and Fifth Avenue (1919). He also illustrated Celia Thaxter's An Island Garden (1894). An extremely prolific and popular artist, he is represented in virtually every major American museum.

Bibliography

See his lithographs with text by F. Griffith (1962); biography by D. F. Hoopes (1988); I. S. Fort, The Flag Paintings of Childe Hassam (1988); H. B. Weinberg et al., Childe Hassam, American Impressionist (2004).

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Hassam, (Frederick) Childe

(born Oct. 17, 1859, Boston, Mass., U.S.—died Aug. 27, 1935, East Hampton, N.Y.) U.S. painter and printmaker. He studied in Boston and Paris before settling in New York City. From 1898 to 1918 he exhibited together with a group of New York and Boston painters known as The Ten, who became the foremost proponents of U.S. Impressionism. Urban life was his favourite subject, but his landscapes of New England and rural New York also became popular. Paintings such as Washington Arch, Spring (1890) are characterized by clear, luminous atmosphere and brilliant colour. He also produced some 400 etchings and lithographs.

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Hassam, Childe (Frederick) (1859–1935) painter; born in Dorchester, Mass. He began his career as an illustrator for magazines, but after a trip to Paris in 1885 he took up the impressionist style. Returning to America in 1889, he settled in New York City and soon became known for his colorful scenes of city life, figure studies, and natural settings such as Celia Thaxter in her Garden (1892). During World War I he painted the "flag series," reflecting current events with the American and other flags on display.