Girls in the Park 1915

Curator: Looking at "Girls in the Park," created by Maurice Prendergast around 1915, I’m immediately struck by how he captures a fleeting moment of leisure. There's an almost dreamlike quality. Editor: Dreamlike is a good word. To me, this oil painting appears very process-oriented. You can see the layering of paint; he really embraced the impasto technique. The very materiality shouts 'paint!' not photographic realism. Curator: Absolutely, and Prendergast was deeply interested in portraying the changing social landscape of early 20th-century America, with the rise of leisure culture and public spaces like parks becoming increasingly important gathering spots for women. What’s interesting to consider is what the social restrictions were for un-chaperoned women, and whether Prendergast makes a social comment or purely aesthetic appreciation for the colorful gathering of women. Editor: I agree. There's also a fascinating dance between high art and, say, craft production here. Prendergast was making art at the dawn of mass production and affordable consumer goods, but the actual application of paint here involved his intense personal labor in a market environment. That’s clear given the almost textile-like patterning of their dresses. Curator: Precisely, the textile comment is very apt! These visual patterns are similar to printed textiles entering mass production at the time. This echoes the historical role of women’s domestic crafts too; there's that interesting interplay, or tension, between societal expectation and the breaking down of formalist notions in fine art. Editor: It reminds us that even in a seemingly straightforward scene, art carries these complex narratives about material, labor, and consumption, not to mention the market for paintings during the artist’s era and how that may have influenced Prendergast in any way. I mean, the sheer delight he takes in the tactile quality of the paint… Curator: Well, that sums it up well, the painting encourages a rich look into society while being very attentive to Prendergast's hand, which has shaped the artistic scene through history. Editor: Exactly, seeing how this moment—and this art—fit into larger networks makes me see it anew.