Carmencita
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
69 7/8 x 40 7/8 in. ( 177.5 x 103.8 cm)
Classification
Painting
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Sir William Van Horne, 1906
Accession Number
06.969
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of late 19th-century Americanism with *Carmencita* (1890), a captivating oil-on-canvas portrait by William Merritt. This life-sized masterpiece (69 7/8 x 40 7/8 in.) depicts the famed Spanish dancer Carmencita known for her exotic performances in New York music halls during the Gilded Age. Chase a leading figure in American art, captures her in a dynamic pose amid swirling flowers, evoking the energy of her flamenco-inspired dances that enthralled audiences, including future president Theodore Roosevelt. Chase's bravura brushwork—loose, vibrant strokes in rich reds...
About the Artist
William Merritt Chase
Prolific painter of portraits, interiors, still lifes and landscapes, famed for establishing the fresh colour and bravura technique used in much early 20th-century American painting. He was considered the most important American teacher of his time; after teaching at the Art Students League of NY he formed the Chase School of Art in 1896. Comment on works: genre, Portraits