1901
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
May Day, Central Park is a 1901 by Maurice Prendergast, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
Bright ribbons twist in the air above a crowd of children dancing in Central Park. Trees are quick green smudges; people are small, colorful dabs of paint. Prendergast often painted parks in Boston, Paris, and Venice, but this is New York in 1901. He lived in Boston at the time, yet he kept coming back to Central Park for its May Day celebrations. The scene feels loose and lively, like a snapshot taken on the move. If you like this light, sketchy style, look up the subject: america.
Maurice Prendergast worked primarily in watercolor, and Central Park—seen in this drawing— was one of his favorite subjects. He regularly visited the popular public area in New York City during the early 1900s, while he was living in Boston. Prendergast's depictions of Central Park often focus on festivities and celebrations, continuing a theme he had explored in other cities, such as Paris and Venice. Here, the artist depicted children celebrating May Day by dancing with colorful ribbons around a Maypole on a sunny day. He worked with rapid, loose marks, leaving portions of the paper visible…
Maurice Prendergast studied in Paris and was influenced by the French Impressionists and their focus on modern urban life.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Maurice Brazil Prendergast (October 10, 1858 – February 1, 1924) was a Newfoundlander-American artist who painted in oil and watercolor, and created monotypes.
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