Flags on the Waldorf 1916

Curator: This is Childe Hassam’s “Flags on the Waldorf,” painted in 1916. The piece is rendered in oil, and you can see the characteristic impasto of Impressionism creating a vibrant, textured surface. Editor: Whoa, sensory overload! I mean that in a good way. All those flags…they're like confetti frozen in time. A parade of pure patriotism exploding on the canvas. What's going on? Curator: Hassam, a dedicated American Impressionist, created this series during World War I. It was a patriotic gesture, reflecting America’s evolving identity and its place on the world stage amidst global conflict. Editor: Evolving is putting it mildly! You've got the old-world architecture, classical columns battling with these almost chaotic brushstrokes. The flags feel less like simple emblems of national pride, and more like a fever dream. A beautiful, overwhelming fever dream. Is he trying to say something about America at a turning point? Curator: Indeed. The flags were both a symbol of support for the Allies and, perhaps more subtly, an assertion of American strength and optimism during a tumultuous time. Note also how Hassam depicts everyday urban life continuing beneath this patriotic display – a juxtaposition of normalcy and national fervor. Editor: I almost missed the people bustling down there! They're like ants next to those towering symbols. It makes you wonder, doesn’t it? What did that flag mean to the person in the street? Was it inspiring, intimidating, a bit of both? Also, there is this sort of cognitive trick when viewing at scale and all those flags at the same time... They don't stand out as flags because there is so many and there is no backdrop (negative space) in between the repetitive symbols to discern them and bring focus into the composition of the piece, it is pure organized visual noise at a large scale! Curator: Precisely, and that ambiguity is, I think, intentional. Hassam doesn’t give us a clear, uncomplicated message. Instead, he presents a snapshot of a nation wrestling with its identity and its role in a changing world. Editor: I love how even today, this snapshot pulls you right into that moment of both grand patriotic expression and quiet self-reflection. All those tiny flags reflecting grand feelings. It still does.