William Merritt Chase (1849–1916), was a tremendously prolific painter and was an expert in vigorously using fresh color qualities and was amongst the best of American painters in the twentieth century. He became a highly revered figure in the field of American art in view of his exceptional skills and abilities in conveying his creativity. He did not limit his paintings to any one style and was considered to be a true realist in utilizing the constituents of realism, impressionism and tonalism in his works. One of the most brilliant works of Chase was the painting titled Study of Flesh Color and Gold, which was painted in 1888, and was first displayed in 1897 at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1897, and is presently located at the National Gallery of Art, Washington. Chase, in creating Study of Flesh Color and Gold went much ahead of others in using pastels, and his skillful techniques enabled the pastels to be used and portrayed in a way that oil paintings would have no standing in the face of such works. The painting when observed closely proves to be a marvel in terms of its rich velvety texture and the superior receptivity of the shades of light used on its surface. It is not surprising that Chase came out with more than a hundred of his works in which he used pastels very effectively in promoting the technique amongst the upcoming painters and artists of the period.
The subject painting has been given more than a single name since it was made. The National Gallery of Art had restored the name Study of Flesh Color and Gold while it was displayed in 1897 at the Art Institute of Chicago, which is aptly suggestive of the titles as preferred by James McNeill Whistler who was a contemporary of William Merritt Chase. The predominant similarities with this title were the works of Whistler such as Nocturne in Black and Gold and Arrangement in Flesh Color and Black. In effect Chase was an enthusiastic fan of the works of Whistler and very willingly, and with lot of interest had augmented friendship with him while he was visiting London in 1885. The two artists got along very well and became famous for the excellent rapport that they shared. Throughout his life, Chase was very appreciative of Whistler and always lauded his achievements in the field of art.
It is clearly evident from Study of Flesh Color and Gold that Chase has made liberal application of pastel which is seen as being relatively dense and with extraordinary vivacity. He has maneuvered the color crayons with an expertise that would make the viewer feel as if it has been done with a brush that richly and lavishly makes use of oil paints. The brightness and real image of the art work does not in any way indicate that the rich texture of oil paints is missing. In fact the painting has been made in keeping with the trends prevailing during that period by way of the increasing influence in the art arena of Japonisme. Just as Whistler had done, Chase too adopted the Japanese styles prevalent during the period. In keeping with the Japanese practices of the time, Chase had tilted the plane of the picture and its composition was cropped to make it similar to Japanese prints. In this painting, Chase had concentrated on the bare back of the subject in keeping with the immense popularity of the eighteenth century popular works of art by Kitagawa Utamaro, which were also much in vogue amongst the avant garde artists and painters of the time. However Chase was able to heighten the impact of his painting in making it extraordinarily astounding by making the bare backed model to be conspicuously visible right in the ultimate front of the work of art, thus bringing about a progressive sensibility that made a mark over the traditionalist nature of the Japanese subject.
Chase had developed his own style in making unique works that were brightly colored and vibrant in conveying his creativity. He found impressionism as a way of conveying his emotions and in Study of Flesh Color and Gold he has effectively conveyed his subjectivity and interpretation in infusing it with artistic brush work and inculcated in it nuances of color and light. It was in this spirit that Chase portrayed his artistic style and intention. He believed in himself as a realist and was always under the strong belief that impressionistic practices enabled the means to express emotions, which in essence are the most important characteristics of a true artist. He achieved a lot as an artist and as a teacher which reflects the influences in American culture of the impressionist movements. He is better known for his extraordinary works of portraits and his subjects included some of the famous people of that period. Chase had a great role in pursuing innovation in the arts and brought about immense progress to institutions catering to the encouragement of art.
Works Cited
www.nga.gov
William Merritt Chase, The Artists’ Blue Book. 2009. Web.
William Merritt Chase Biography, 2009. Web.