Ashcan Exhibit at the DIA

I went to a wonderful exhibit at The Detroit Institute of Arts last weekend. Entitled Life’s Pleasure, the show features art from The Ashcan School. I love art history, so I thought I’d share a bit with you.

Polo, by George Bellows

At the turn of the last century, a tightly knit group of New York artists began to focus their work on scenes of average life. And from all walks of life. Because many of their paintings included New York’s underclass, critics dubbed their style Ashcan.

Dempsey and Firpo, by George Bellows

The principle members of the Ashcan School were Arthur B. Davies (1862-1928), Robert Henri (1865-1929), George Luks (1867-1933), William Glackens (1870-1938), John Sloan (1871-1951), and Everett Shinn (1876-1953). Others include: Alfred Maurer (1868-1932), George Wesley Bellows (1882-1925), and Guy Pène Du Bois (1884-1958).

Chez Mouquin, by William Glackens

They painted life as they saw it - using quick brush strokes and saturated palettes. At the time, social conventions were rapidly changing - especially for women. While it was becoming acceptable for a woman to dine in a restaurant, many looked on it as unseemly. The fact that fine artists made this their subject matter was also risque. (If only they could have seen 100 years into the future.)

Mahone Bay, by William Glackens

Many of these paintings are available in poster form. All Posters is a good resource. If you haven’t heard of The Ashcan School and choose to finish a room with a poster by, say, George Bellows, you can impress your friends and neighbors with a bit of history behind the art.

The exhibit at the DIA runs through May 25th. Visit their Website for more information.

• Posted by Jennifer at 8:30 am
• Tagged: Detroit, Art