Claude Monet, Champ d'avoine (Oat Field), 1890. Oil On Canvas, 26 x 36 7/16 in., 66 x 92.6 cm. Harn Museum of Art. Gift of Michael A. Singer, 1999.6. 

CHATTANOOGA, TN.- Opening to the public on June 27 – September 20, 2015 at the Hunter Museum of American Art, Monet and American Impressionism will feature several Monet paintings and highlight twenty-five American artists who launched a new way of painting in response to the influence of French Impressionism. The exhibition, a collaboration between the Harn Museum of Art in Gainesville, the Telfair Museums in Savannah and the Hunter Museum, will present roughly fifty paintings and twenty prints dated between 1880-1920 by many of the leading figures in American Impressionism, such as Mary Cassatt, William Merritt Chase, Childe Hassam, Willard Metcalf, Theodore Robinson, John Henry Twachtman, and J. Alden Weir. These artists adapted the innovations of French Impressionism and ultimately paved the way to a uniquely American style of painting in the 19th century. 

Frederick Carl Frieseke, The Garden Umbrella. Oil On Canvas, 32 5/16 x 32 5/16 in. Telfair Museum of Art. Bequest of Elizabeth Millar (Mrs. Bernice Frost) Bullard, 1942.7.

Monet explored the effects of light on color and form, and the Impressionists favored images of modern life painted in a revolutionary style that emphasized loose brushstrokes of unblended color. Enthralled by changing light effects, they painted informal subjects en plein air, or outdoors.  

John Leslie Breck, Grey Day on the Charles. 1894. Oil On Canvas, 18 x 22 in., 45.7 x 55.9 cm. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. The J. Harwood and Louise B. Cochrane Fund for American Art.

The exhibition offers an exciting array of American Impressionist art as practiced by many of its leading figures such as Mary Cassatt, William Merritt Chase, Childe Hassam, Willard Metcalf, Theodore Robinson and John Henry Twachtman. In the late nineteenth century, these artists adapted the innovations of French Impressionism, ultimately paving the way to establishing it as one of the most enduring styles in American art. Some of these artists had direct knowledge of Monet’s techniques through extended stays in Giverny where Monet had settled in 1883. Others were exposed to his style through exhibitions of his art in New York, Boston and abroad, or through the filter of important teachers such as Metcalf and Robinson.  

Childe Hassam, Avenue of the Allies. Oil On Canvas, 18 1/8 x 15 3/16 in. Telfair Museum of Art. Bequest of Elizabeth Millar (Mrs. Bernice Frost) Bullard, 1942.11.

Spanning the years between 1887 and 1920, the paintings, pastels, and prints featured in the exhibition explore several topics that interested the Impressionists. Visitors will be able to contemplate the allure of Giverny, the pleasures of country retreats, the vibrance of urbanism and the comforts of home. Through these themes, the exhibition delves into the many ways American artists responded to Monet, as well as their shared taste for new approaches and attitudes to painting.  

Maurice Brazil Prendergast, Salem Willows, 1904. Oil On Canvas, 26 1/4 x 34 1/4 in. Terra Foundation for American Art. Daniel J. Terra Collection.

To take full advantage of this unique exhibition, the Hunter Museum will offer a variety of programs and events in celebration of the Monet and American Impressionism exhibition, including special members-only receptions, renowned guest speakers and public programming. 

Childe Hassam, Gloucester. 1919. Oil On Panel, 23 1/4 x 26 3/8 in., 59.1 x 67 cm. Harn Museum of Art. Gift from the Carol & Stephen Shey Collection 2004.41.

Frederick Carl Frieseke, Reflections (Marcelle). Oil On Canvas, 32 x 27 in. Telfair Museum of Art Museum purchase,  1910.1.

Gari Melchers, The Unpretentious Garden. Oil On Canvas, 33 5/8 x 40 1/2 in. Telfair Museum of Art Museum, purchase, Button Gwinnett Autograph Fund, 1916.5.

Ernest Lawson, Spring Thaw. Oil On Canvas, 25 1/4 x 30 1/8 in., 64.1 x 76.5 cm. Terra Foundation for American Art, Daniel J. Terra Collection, 1999.85.

Claude Monet, Bridge at Argenteuil on a Gray Day, c. 1876. Oil On Canvas, 24 x 31 5/8 in., 61 x 80.3 cm. National Gallery of Art Ailsa, Mellon Bruce Collection, 1970.17.44.

Mary Cassatt, In the Omnibus, 1890-1891. Drypoint And Aquatint On Laid Paper, 14 3/8 x 10 1/2 in., 14 3/8 x 10 1/2 in. National Gallery of Art, Chester Dale Collection, 1963.10.250.

Mary Cassatt, Gathering Fruit, 1893. Aquatint, 16 11/16 x 11 11/16 in. Hill-Stead Museum, Alfred Atmore Pope Collection.

Childe Hassam, Washington's Birthday--Fifth Avenue at 23rd Street, 1916. Etching, 12 15/16 X 6 15/16 in, 32.9 X 17.6 cm. Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, museum purchase with funds provided by the Long Endowment for American Art and Mr. and Mrs. Meredith Long 2000.199.

Mary Cassatt, Lydia and Her Mother at Tea, 1882. Soft Ground Etching And Aquatint, National Gallery of Art, Rosenwald Collection, 1949.5.465.

Frederick Carl Frieseke, Lilies, by 1911. Oil On Canvas, 25 3/4 x 32 1/8 in., 65.4 x 81.6 cm. Terra Foundation for American Art Daniel J. Terra Collection, 1999.55.

Helen Maria Turner, Lillies, Lanterns and Sunshine, 1923. Oil On Canvas, 36 1/8 x 44 in., 103.5 x 123.8 cm. Chrysler Museum of Art, Gift of W.B.S. Grandy.

Theodore Robinson, Afternoon Shadows, 1891. Oil On Canvas, 19 x 22 1/2 in., 48.3 x 57.2 cm. Harn Museum of Art Museum purchase, funds provided by Michael A. and Donna Singer, 2007.7.

Willard Metcalf, Thawing Brook, 1917. Oil On Canvas, 36 x 36 in. Columbus Museum, G.1985.16.

Robert William Vonnoh, Jardin de paysanne, 1890. Oil On Canvas Board, 25 7/8 x 19 3/4 in., 65.7 x 50.2 cm. Terra Foundation for American Art, Daniel J. Terra Collection, 1987.8.

Mary Cassatt, Woman Bathing, 1890-1891. Drypoint And Aquatint On Laid Paper, 14 5/16 x 10 1/2 in., 36.4 x 26.7 cm. National Gallery of Art, Chester Dale Collection, 1963.10.253.

Childe Hassam, The Willow Pool, 1917. Etching On Paper, 7 3/8 x 8 15/16 in. Telfair Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. Childe Hassam through Frank C. Crasto, Jr., 1940.13.12.

John Henry Twachtman, Horseneck Falls, ca. 1900. Oil On Canvas, 30 x 25 in. Columbus Museum, G.1997.4.

Richard Emil Miller (American, 1875-1943), La Toilette, c. 1914. Oil on canvas, 40 x 32 ½ in. (101.6 x 82.6 cm). The Columbus Museum, Georgia, Museum purchase made possible by Mrs. J.B. Knight, Jr., in memory of her husband.

Childe Hassam, Inner Harbor (Gloucester), probably 1918 Lithograph On Paper 7 7/16 x 11 1/2 in. Telfair Museum of Art Gift of Mrs. Childe Hassam through Frank C. Crasto, Jr. 1940.13.16.

Frederick Carl Frieseke, The Hammock, by 1915 Oil On Canvas 38 5/8 x 51 5/8 in. Telfair Museum of Art Museum purchase 1917.3.

Childe Hassam, Colonial Church Gloucester, 1913 Lithograph On Paper 13 1/4 x 10 1/8 in. Telfair Museum of Art Gift of Mrs. Childe Hassam through Frank C. Crasto, Jr. 1940.13.14.

Willard LeRoy Metcalf , Buttercup Time, 1920. Oil On Canvas, 26 1/4 x 29 in. Telfair Museum of Art Museum purchase, 1926.1.

James McNeill Whistler, The Thames, 1896. Lithotint With Scraping, 10 7/16 x 7 3/8 in. Baltimore Museum of Art, The Conrad Collection.

Childe Hassam, Northeast Gorge at Appledore, 1912. Oil On Canvas, 24 1/2 x 26 1/2 in., 62.2 x 67.3 cm. Harn Museum of Art Museum Purchase by exchange, gift of Louise H. Courtelis with additional funds provided by Michael A. Singer, 2004.22.

Childe Hassam, Springtime Vision, 1900. Oil On Canvas, 21 1/2 x 15 1/2 in., 54.6 x 39.4 cm. Harn Museum of Art. Bequest of Ruth P. Phillips, 2005.23.

Childe Hassam, French Tea Garden, 1910. Oil On Canvas, 35 x 40.25 in., 88.9 x 102.2 cm. Hunter Museum of American Art. Gift of the Benwood Foundation, 1976.3.13 Hunter Museum of America Art.

William James Glackens, Miss Olga D., 1910. Oil On Canvas, 32 x 26 in., 81.3 x 66 cm. Hunter Museum of American Art. Gift of the Benwood Foundation, 1976.3.11.

Lilla Cabot Perry, A Stream Beneath Poplars, 1890-1900. Oil On Canvas, 25.75 x 32 in., 65.4 x 81.3 cm. Hunter Museum of American Art, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Stuart P. Field, 1973.21.