Clara Taggart MacChesney (sometimes McChesney) (1860/61-1928) was an American painter and writer known for her figurative painting, landscapes and “scenes and people of Holland.”Petteys, Chris, ''Dictionary of Women Artists: An international dictionary of women artists born before 1900'', G.K. Hall & Co., Boston, 1985.

Early years

Born in Brownsville, California, her family moved to

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

when she was young where her father, Joseph B. McChesney, was principal of Oakland High School. MacChesney began her art studies in San Francisco with Virgil Williams at the California School of Design, before moving to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to continue her studies with H. S. Mowbray and J. C. Beckwith. This was followed by a move to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, where she enrolled in the

Académie Colarossi The Académie Colarossi (1870–1930) was an art school in Paris founded in 1870 by the Italian model and sculptor Filippo Colarossi. It was originally located on the Île de la Cité, and it moved in 1879 to 10 rue de la Grande-Chaumière in the ...

and studied with

Courtois Courtois can refer to: Locations *Courtois-sur-Yonne, a commune in Yonne department, France *Courtois, Missouri, an unincorporated community *Courtois Creek, a creek in Missouri *Courtois Hills, a region in Missouri Persons Painters *Jean Cour ...

. MacChesney exhibited watercolors at the 1893

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordi ...

in Chicago, and was awarded a medal for her work. An article in ''

The San Francisco Call ''The San Francisco Call'' was a newspaper that served San Francisco, California. Because of a succession of mergers with other newspapers, the paper variously came to be called ''The San Francisco Call & Post'', the ''San Francisco Call-Bulletin ...

'' announced that she had placed two paintings in the 1900 World's Exposition in Paris, and remarked that: "Both American and foreign artists have referred to Miss McChesney as 'America's foremost woman painter.' " She would later exhibit at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, winning a bronze medal. She also wrote and published pieces for New York art publications, “frequently on her lifelong friend

Elizabeth Nourse Elizabeth Nourse (October 26, 1859 – October 8, 1938) was a realist-style genre, portrait, and landscape painter born in Mt. Healthy, Ohio, in the Cincinnati area. She also worked in decorative painting and sculpture. Described by her contempo ...

.” MacChesney lived in

Carmel-by-the-Sea, California Carmel-by-the-Sea (), often simply called Carmel, is a city in Monterey County, California, United States, founded in 1902 and incorporated on October 31, 1916. Situated on the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel is known for its natural scenery and ric ...

in the 1920s. She wrote about Carmel-by-the-Sea and its pageant and drama in the ''New-York Tribune.''

Death

She died in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on August 6, 1928.

Gallery

File:Clara Taggart MacChesney-A Good Story (Portrait of Robert Loftin Newman) 1900.jpg, A Good Story (Portrait of

Robert Loftin Newman Robert Loftin Newman (November 10, 1827 – March 31, 1912) was an American painter and stained-glass designer. He specialized in oil on canvas as his medium. He is sometimes associated with Albert Pinkham Ryder as a painter of mood. His works in ...

), 1900 File:Clara Taggart MacChesney-The Last Letter 1917.jpg, The Last Letter, 1917 File:Clara Taggart MacChesney-portrait of Moncure Daniel Conway.jpg, portrait of

Moncure Daniel Conway Moncure Daniel Conway (March 17, 1832 – November 15, 1907) was an American abolitionist minister and radical writer. At various times Methodist, Unitarian, and a Freethinker, he descended from patriotic and patrician families of Virginia and ...

File:Clara Taggart MacChesney-White House, Evening.jpg, White House, Evening File:Clara Taggart MacChesney - Girl Reading by a Window.jpg, Girl Reading by a Window

Works

* ''A Good Story (Portrait of Robert Loftin Newman)'', (1900)

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds o ...

, Washington, D.C. * ''Still Life with Plate and Kettle'',

National Arts Club The National Arts Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and members club on Gramercy Park, Manhattan, New York City. It was founded in 1898 by Charles DeKay, an art and literary critic of the ''New York Times'' to "stimulate, foster, and promote public ...

, Manhattan, New York City *''Hay Barges, San Francisco'',

Oakland Museum The Oakland Museum of California or OMCA (formerly the Oakland Museum) is an interdisciplinary museum dedicated to the art, history, and natural science of California, located adjacent to Oak Street, 10th Street, and 11th Street in Oakland, Cali ...

, Oakland, California * ''Portrait of Governor George C. Pardee'' (1911),

California State Capitol The California State Capitol is the seat of the California state government, located in Sacramento, the state capital of California. The building houses the chambers of the California State Legislature, made up of the Assembly and the Senate, al ...

, SacramentoGeorge C. Pardee
from SIRIS.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:MacChesney, Clara Taggart 1860s births 1928 deaths 19th-century American painters 20th-century American painters 19th-century American women painters 20th-century American women painters Académie Colarossi alumni Artists from Oakland, California Painters from California San Francisco Art Institute alumni