The Little Pond, Appledore
1890
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
40.6 × 55.8 cm (16 × 22 in.)
Classification
painting
Department
Arts of the Americas
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
105462
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Appledore Island, one of the Isles of Shoals located off the coast of Maine and New Hampshire, was the home of poet Celia Thaxter and attracted numerous artists and writers to its rocky shores during the late 19th century. Childe Hassam painted The Little Pond, Appledore during his first summer visit there. After several years of study in Europe, he applied the bright palette, broken brushwork, and dramatic light effects of Impressionist painting to American landscapes.
About the Artist
Childe Hassam · 1859–1935
Frederick Childe Hassam, born on October 17, 1859, in Dorchester, Massachusetts, to a family of New England descent with ties to Nathaniel Hawthorne through his mother, Rosa Delia Hawthorne, displayed an early aptitude for art. After his father's cutlery business was ruined by the Great Boston Fire of 1872, Hassam apprenticed as a wood engraver under George E. Johnson while taking drawing and wate...