Impressionism in Connecticut

Impressionism in Connecticut. . , This Viewpoint extends the museum sites of the Connecticut Impressionist Art Trail , Connecticut's Millennium Legacy Trail , to the outdoor settings that artists portrayed at the turn of the 20th century in a manner that came to be called American Impressionism. Visit the website for the Connecticut Impressionist Art Trail to learn about the Trail, the other Viewpoints, and the leading role that Connecticut played in the development in the American Impressionism., The Artist , Edward Potthast (1857-1927), from Cincinnati, had the special love for the seashore that often noted in people who are unable to experience an ocean beach until they are grown. In the 1890s, after art study in Antwerp, Munich, and Paris, he settled in New York City and painted figures, landscapes, and seascapes not unlike those of his contemporaries. By 1910, however, he was painting scenes of children romping on the public beaches at Coney Island and Rockaway. Sunny, brightly colored, and vigorously brushed, these paintings were immediately popular. Potthast loved the subject matter and for the rest of his life traveled up and down the New England coast painting children and women enjoying the ocean shore. He was never able to paint at this beach, but the intimate view from this spot is one he would have liked., The Painting , White dresses, hairbows, and dress shoes would be ridiculous for beach attire for females today, but when Potthast began painting beach scenes in 1910 people enjoyed the shore in clothes better suited to a city street. Thirty years earlier, even a greater formality of dress and demeanor had been the rule. Men had appeared in frock coats and top hats, and corseted women trailed long skirts through the sands. American attitudes toward recreation underwent significant changes as the 20th century approached. Potthast's "modern" females revel in the sunlight and ocean breeze. His sketch-like view of the central figures, seemingly caught in mid-motion, conveys their pleasure in the moment. Broad brushwork enhances the air of vitality, and touches of bright color animate the scene still more. American Impressionist art, usually intimate, sunny, and colorful, celebrates the smiling aspects of nature and often, too, the bond of familial love, especially that between mothers and children., The Place , Sherwood Island is the first site in Connecticut to have been designated a state park. In 1914 the State Park and Forest Commission purchased a five-acre strip of beach. Gradually the park was expanded to its present size of 234 acres of beach, uplands, and salt marshes. The park was gradually improved, especially in the 1950s when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers constructed jetties and extended the two beaches that now offer more than 6,000 feet of waterfront. Named for Sherwood Forest of Robin Hood lore, this public place, which offers facilities for both swimming and picnicking, is a monument to the continuing efforts of the State Department of Environmental Protection to provide Connecticut residents with a share of the state's natural recreation areas. Efforts to preserve this site once faced strong opposition by some who wanted real estate development here. Because preservation prevailed, we can enjoy this park today and know for ourselves why Impressionists like Edward Potthast flocked to Connecticut at the turn of the 20th century to paint its countryside and shore.