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Artists of the Commonwealth: Realism and Its Response in Pennsylvania Painting, 1900-1950 While New York is often thought of as the center of the American art world, the accomplishments of Pennsylvania's artists have rivaled those of our neighbor to the north, and our commonwealth's artistic roots actually reach back to the early colonial period. Great artistic families like the Peales not only gave us many fine works of art but also founded America's first art museum, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. At their academies and universities, influential cities like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh served as training grounds for young artists. Rural counties like Lancaster and Bucks helped to inspire artistic vision through their scenic beauty. Following the success of a similar exhibition in 2001 that focused on the latter half of the 20th century, this exhibit features paintings by 38 Pennsylvania artists who worked in the first half of the century, focusing on the common stylistic thread of realism in its many forms—from the romantic realism of Daniel Garber and Mary Cassatt, to the more precise realism of Charles Sheeler, to the impressionist realism of Edward Redfield and Robert Spencer. Other well-known artists in the show include Henry Ossawa Tanner, Cecilia Beaux, Robert Henri, Arthur B. Carles, and Violet Oakley. Artists with Bucks County connections include Garber, Sheeler, Redfield, Spencer, Fern Coppedge, Walter Schofield, and Clarence Carter. The exhibit was organized by three Western Pennsylvania art museums—Westmoreland, Southern Alleghenies, and Erie—with the assistance of the Michener Art Museum.
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