Frederick Childe Hassam was was an American Impressionist painter, noted for his urban and coastal scenes. Along with Mary Cassatt and John Henry Twachtman, Hassam was instrumental in promulgating Impressionism to American collectors, dealers, and museums and was an influential American artist of the early 20th century. Happy Birthday!
Despite academic training at the Académie Julian in Paris, Hassam gravitated to more avant-garde styles. He returned to America as a full-fledged "impressionist" and proceeded to receive acclaim for his city street scenes and American flag series.
Hassam exhibited in the prestigious Armory Show of 1913, but eventually became a member of The Ten, a group of artists who refused to exhibit in juried exhibitions. April was based on the nineteenth-century style dress of the subject and the painting's original title, April 1859, recent scholars believe that Hassam intended this painting as a portrayal of his mother, Rosa Hathorne Hassam, during her pregnancy. In April, Rosa would have been in her third month of pregnancy with her artist son born on October 17, 1859.
Help us and donate so we will be able to release the new version of DailyArt this autumn: http://support.getdailyart.com