Where to See Maurice Prendergast

Maurice Prendergast's work can be viewed in several museums. In the United States, these include the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), the Museum of Modern Art (New York), the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (Richmond), the Wolfsonian at Florida International University (Miami Beach), and the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art (Winter Park, Florida). One of his paintings, *Ponte della Paglia in Venice*, 1899, is held in the Phillips Collection, Washington. The Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas holds William Merrit Chase's *Leisure*, 1894. In Canada, his work is held by the Royal Ontario Museum (Toronto). In the United Kingdom, see the Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, the Geffrye Museum (London), the Manchester Art Gallery, the National Museums of Scotland (Edinburgh), and the Victoria & Albert Museum (London).

Prints are artworks produced in multiples, either by hand or photochemical means. Handmade prints are considered originals, as the artist creates the artwork directly on a plate, woodblock, stone, or screen. These include woodcuts, engravings, linocuts, mezzotints, etchings, lithographs and serigraphs. Each print from a limited edition is numbered (for example, 35/100), with the first number indicating its place in the sequence and the second showing the total number of prints in the edition. Artists often sign their prints to confirm their authenticity and approval. Some keep 10% of the edition as artist's proofs, marked 'AP'. Prints became a major artistic medium in the late nineteenth century. They allowed artists to reach a wider audience due to their greater availability and lower cost, compared to unique works. Dealers like Julius Meier-Graefe and Ambroise Vollard promoted prints as a popular art form, encouraging painters and sculptors to create them. Offset reproductions (also known as posters) are produced by photochemical means. Giclée prints are fine art prints made using colour-copier technology.

Maurice Prendergast's works are important because he was among the first American artists to recognise and promote the work of Paul Cézanne. Prendergast first spent five years in Paris in the 1880s, but he was not yet aware of Cézanne. On a later trip to Italy, he stopped in Paris in 1898-99. This time, he visited Vollard's gallery and returned to Boston as an admirer of Cézanne. Prendergast's enthusiasm initially found little support. He lived in relative poverty and moved in a small circle. More importantly, there was little opportunity to see Cézanne's work in the United States at the time. Nevertheless, his fervour did have an effect. John Sloan remembered Prendergast discussing the Cézanne paintings he had viewed in France. Walter Pach noted that Prendergast's references to Cézanne influenced the Americans who knew him. Prendergast returned to Paris for several months in 1907. He saw exhibitions of Cézanne, Berthe Morisot, and Eva Gonzales. He wrote to his patron, Mrs Oliver Williams of Boston, about Cézanne's wonderful colour and sympathy. He felt that Cézanne would influence him more than the others.

Maurice Prendergast was an early American Modernist painter known for his unique approach to colour and form. He worked primarily in oil paint and watercolour, often combining the two techniques. Prendergast's early work shows the influence of Impressionism, with broken brushstrokes and attention to light. However, he soon developed his own distinctive style, characterised by flattened forms and bright, non-naturalistic colours. He frequently used a technique called "colour spots", applying small dabs of pure colour side by side to create a mosaic-like effect. In addition to painting, Prendergast was also a skilled printmaker, producing monotypes and woodcuts. His prints often feature similar subjects and compositions to his paintings, but with a more simplified and graphic style. He experimented with different papers and inks to achieve a variety of textures and effects.

Maurice Prendergast's work represents the end of American Impressionism and the start of modern painting in the United States. He was influenced by French Impressionists, but went further in his reduction of forms. Prendergast also gained inspiration from Paul Cézanne. After visiting Paris in 1907, he wrote to his patron, Mrs Oliver Williams, stating that Cézanne would influence him more than others. He was impressed by the Salon d'Automne retrospective, which included works by Cézanne, Berthe Morisot, and Eva Gonzales. Prendergast admired Cézanne's use of colour and the imaginative, suggestive qualities of his paintings. He also expressed enthusiasm for the Fauves and their bold use of colour. Prendergast, along with William Glackens, adapted Impressionist approaches to paintings of contemporary urban life.

Maurice Prendergast (1859-1924) was born in the same year as Georges Seurat. Prendergast moved beyond the Impressionists, who influenced him. He structured his picture plane with rough brushstrokes of pure colour. His reduction of forms points towards the direction that art would take in the 20th century. Prendergast disregarded the fashionable colour theories of the time. He allowed his own painterly intuition to guide him in the composition of his pictures. He juxtaposed daubs of colour to capture the glittering and shimmering light of fleeting movement. His paintings did not demonstrate any political agenda or critical social commentary. He chose peaceful scenes as his motifs, transposing them to the canvas like a prism of ever-changing colour. Stylistically, Prendergast represents the end of American Impressionism and the start of a truly modern style of painting in the United States.

Maurice Prendergast is best known for his depictions of leisure activities. He painted scenes of urban parks and seaside resorts. These often feature families and groups of people enjoying themselves. It is difficult to name one single work as his "most famous". However, certain paintings are particularly well recognised and admired. "Central Park, New York" (1901) is a celebrated example of his early style. It shows figures in the park rendered with bright colours and flattened forms. "The Promenade" (1913) is another popular work. It captures a lively street scene with a crowd of people. In this painting, Prendergast uses broken brushstrokes to create a sense of movement and energy. His monotypes are also significant. "Ponte della Paglia" (c. 1898-99) demonstrates his skill in this medium. It depicts a Venetian scene with a focus on atmosphere and light. Prendergast's work is valued for its joyful spirit and innovative approach to colour and composition.

Maurice Prendergast is often associated with Post-Impressionism, a French movement that arose between 1880 and 1905. Post-Impressionism followed Impressionism and included artists such as Paul Cézanne, Paul Gauguin, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and Vincent van Gogh. Post-Impressionists, while building on the colour breakthroughs of their predecessors, sought something more substantial than capturing a fleeting moment. This desire led to diverse approaches. Some artists, like Cézanne, concentrated on formal design, while others, such as van Gogh, explored expressing emotions through colour and light. The term "Post-Impressionism" is, however, an awkward fit. Some critics suggest that "expressionist" might be a better descriptor, as many Post-Impressionists aimed at emotional expression, prioritising it over representational accuracy. They valued the originality of personal experience, conveyed through the formal design of their work. This emphasis on expression sometimes meant subordinating the plausible representation of elements to the overall expressive design.