Childe Hassam: Impressions in Black and White

Childe Hassam (American, 1859 – 1935)
Avenue of the Allies, 1918
Lithograph on paper
18 x 11 in.
Gift of Mrs. Childe Hassam 1941.5.9

Childe Hassam (American, 1859 – 1935)
The Spar Shop, 1918
Lithograph on paper
12 x 18 in.
Gift of Mrs. Childe Hassam 1941.5.29

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MAY 1 – AUGUST 17, 2025

Childe Hassam was already one of America’s most celebrated Impressionist painters when, in 1915 at the age of 56, he turned his attention to printmaking. He embraced etching and lithography with enthusiasm, and the challenges of working in fresh media reinvigorated his art. He developed a new, linear vocabulary to portray his impressions of the fleeting effects of light and air, translating the broken, flecked painted brushstrokes of Impressionism into short, staccato hatch marks. His economy of line and exploitation of the blank, white space of the paper capture the essence of place and evoke atmospheric effects.

Drawn from the Speed’s permanent collection, Childe Hassam: Impressions in Black and White features etchings and lithographs spanning the artist’s career— from his early years in Paris when he was first introduced to Impressionism, to his maturity of the 1920s and ‘30s. The subjects portrayed reflect his varied interests, including the bustling life of New York City and the rural landscape of New England where he found respite in his later years. Nearly all of the works featured in the exhibition were gifted to the Speed by Hassam’s wife in 1941 following the artist’s death. Childe Hassam: Impressions in Black and White is curated by Kim Spence, curator of works on paper.