The Eight Reject Tradition & Find Modernism

Washington Square, Winter (Washington Square), 1910. William James Glackens (1870–1938). Oil on canvas, 25 x 30 in. New Britain Museum of American Art, Charles F. Smith Fund, 1944.03.

The group of artists known as The Eight, led by Robert Henri (1865–1929), formed in 1907 in protest of the academic tradition. Members included Arthur B. Davies (1862–1928), William Glackens (1878–1930), Ernest Lawson (1873–1939), George B. Luks (1867–1933), Maurice B. Prendergast (1858–1924), Everett Shinn (1876–1953), and John Sloan (1871–1951). Traditional academic training stressed drawing objects of beauty and was based on classical art forms. Inspired by common street scenes and urban life, these “Ashcan” artists rejected the refined themes of mythology and literature that were no longer pertinent in the Industrial Age.

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Art and Fashion: Fashion in Portraiture

The Reverend Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright, 1820. John Trumbull, (1756-1843). Oil on Canvas, 29 3/4 x 23 3/4 in. New Britain Museum of American Art, Harriet Russell Stanley Fund, 1948.08.

Regardless of time or place, fashion has been an unmistakable facet of portraiture. What someone is wearing in their depiction can tell the viewer the period in which it was painted, the economic standing of the sitter, their relative age, and much much more. While the faces of the subjects are important for identification, their clothing gives further insight to their lives. In John Trumbull’s portrait of Reverend Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright (1820) we can assess what kind of man he is without ever knowing his title. He is clothed in traditional clergyman robes—an austere black and white. The overall lack of color in his wardrobe signifies a devotion to his religious practices while the singularly bright book indicates his passion for the scriptures.

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Collection Highlights: The Eight

Snow in New York, 1902. Robert Henri, (1865-1929). Oil on canvas, 32 x 25 13/16 in. (81.3 x 65.5 cm). National Gallery of Art, from the Chester Dale Collection, 1954.4.3.

“The Eight” was a group of American artists devoted to depicting urban realism in each of their own unique styles.  They were considered to be rebellious pioneers of modern American art.  The Eight exhibited only once together in 1908 where they took it upon themselves to organize the exhibition rather than to go through the National Academy.

Robert Henri (1865-1929) was the leader of the group.  He met and befriended the “Philadelphia Four,” a group of newspaper illustrators (William Glakens, George Luks, Everett Shinn, and John Sloan) and encouraged them to become painters.  The five of them eventually moved to New York City and also came to be associated with the Ashcan School. 

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