Portrait of Esther M. Groome c. 1912

William Merritt Chase painted this portrait of Esther M. Groome sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. The image is a loose, painterly rendering of a woman in a white dress, painted in a style that shows the influence of European impressionism on American art. The painting's meaning shifts when we place it within the context of Chase's career as an influential teacher. He taught at the Art Students League of New York and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Here, he helped to shape the next generation of American artists. Paintings like this were often demonstrations of technique for his students. The art market helped to establish the institutional authority of Chase's academic brand of impressionism. Historical research into the exhibition history and critical reception of Chase's work can help us understand his role in the American art world. In this way, we learn to see the complex relationship between art, institutions, and social values.