Don't you just love this? One artist painting another, one of my favorite things! Our artist Emma Löwstädt-Chadwick appears to have used a limited palette (using only a few colors instead of a wide range.) We know it was done en plein air, that is, painted outside from life. From the looseness and simplicity of the style we might guess it was also done alla prima (quickly painted, all in a single session.) However, it's a little on the large size for a piece done in one sitting, so who knows?
Emma Löwstädt-Chadwick, also sometimes known as simply Emma Chadwick, painted this of her friend and colleague Amanda Sidwall. We even know where this beach beauty was painted, on the coast of Brittany, and the year, 1880.
When artists paint en plein air, outside from observation, we face a lot of real life challenges. It's all part of the fun, and expected; nevertheless it can sometimes be a bit daunting! Besides wind, rain, insects, animals and more, the main issue for most of us is how quickly the light changes. There's about an hour and a half where the shadows are similar enough to when you started the painting, then the natural passage of the sun means the scene starts looking distinctly different. Or perhaps you start painting in bright sunshine and then a cloud bank moves in after twenty minutes! What to do? Personally, I often do exactly what Emma Löwstädt-Chadwick seems to have done here: I simply pivot and start painting the people around me.
Emma Löwstadt-Chadwick (Swedish, 1855–1932) was born Emma Hilma Amalia Löwstädt in Stockholm, Sweden. She was the granddaughter of artist Carl Teodor Löwstädt, and her younger sister Eva Löwstadt-Åström also became a well-known artist. In fact, just because it is so beautiful, here is a portrait of Eva painted by Emma:
It takes a while to hone the skills needed to paint well. Emma began her artistic training in Sweden at the Swedish Royal Academy of Fine Arts. After her graduation, she moved to Paris and enrolled at the Académie Julian, one of the only first-class painting ateliers in Paris open to women at the time. Its alumni rolls are therefore absolutely star-studded! Emma became friends with many other talented women painters including Amanda Sidwall and Marie Bashkirtseff. During the summer of 1879 Emma traveled to the Breton coast with friends, where she tried out the new French trends of Impressionism and painting en plein air (fast gaining in popularity because of the invention of the collapsible metal paint tube in 1841!) She loved the light in this northern region of France and returned there many times throughout her life, incorporating Breton motifs in her larger studio work. She exhibited regularly in the Paris Salon in the 1880s, earning honorable mentions for her work.
Emma eventually made her way to the French artists colony of Grez-sur-Loing where she met her future husband, American expatriate painter Francis B. Chadwick. They married in 1887 and bought an inn, the Pension Laurent, which became a popular gathering place for their artist friends and family members.
Emma and Francis had three children. They traveled extensively together on painting trips and Emma also went on trips with female friends such as Amanda Sidwall. Over time Emma began to pursue etching as her primary artistic medium, becoming a founding member of the Graphic Society, Grafiska Sällskapet, in 1910. She seems to have had a lot of good friends and been well-liked, and she was definitely highly regarded as an artist. She successfully exhibited her work internationally right up to the last few years of her life.
Emma was included in the 2018 exhibit at The Clark Art Institute, Women in Paris 1850-1900.
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