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William Merritt Chase etchings "Keying Up--the Court Jester" and "Spanish Peasant"

 Collection
Identifier: KA-0080

Abstract

American artist and founder of Parsons School of Design William Merritt Chase (1848-1916) etched the two works comprising this collection, "Keying Up--the Court Jester" (1879) and "Spanish Peasant" (circa 1881).

Dates

  • 1879, circa 1881

Creator

Extent

0.1 Cubic Feet (2 prints)

Language of Materials

English

Scope and Content of Collection

The collection consists of two etchings by William Merritt Chase:

"Keying Up--the Court Jester" (1879). 6 3/4 x 4 1/2 inches.

"Spanish Peasant" (circa 1881). 5 1/2 x 3 inches.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use. Please contact archivist@newschool.edu for appointment.

Use Restrictions

To publish images of material from this collection, permission must be obtained in writing from the New School Archives. Please contact: archivist@newschool.edu.

Biographical note

American Impressionist painter William Merritt Chase (1848-1916), founder of the Chase School (later, Parsons The New School for Design), was a member of the New York Etching Club, which formed in 1877 and marked a period of avid engagement with the medium on the part of American artists. Chase, however, did not prefer the medium, and only did about ten etchings, several of which were completed on commission after the artists J.F. Millet and Constantine Troyon.

Chase etched "Keying Up--the Court Jester" (1879) after his own painting of the same title, which was made in 1875 when he was a student at the Munich Royal Academy. The etching, a reverse image of the painting, was widely distributed in a bid to capitalize upon the attention drawn to Chase after his painting earned a medal of honor at the 1896 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. The painting is in the collection of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.

"Spanish Peasant" (circa 1881) is one of three etchings Chase exhibited with the New York Etching Club.

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Source: Pisano, Ronald G., D. Frederick. Baker, and Marjorie Shelley. William Merritt Chase: the Paintings in Pastel, Monotypes, Painted Tiles and Ceramic Plates, Watercolors and Prints. Vol. I. New Haven: Yale UP, 2006. Print. The Complete Catalogue of Known and Documented Work by William Merritt Chase (1849-1916).

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Purchased from Rona Schneider Fine Prints, 2003.

Related Materials

The Ronald G. Pisano project records for the William Merritt Chase catalogue raisonné (KA.0010 ) in the New School Archives provide extensive documentation of Chase's work.

Title
Guide to the William Merritt Chase etchings "Keying Up--the Court Jester" and "Spanish Peasant"
Status
Completed
Author
New School Archives and Special Collections Staff
Date
August 2, 2010
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin