Many American artists traveled to Paris, France, to further their careers. Several of the American portraitists, realists, impressionists, and abstract artists that studied, lived, and worked in Paris, France during the late 19th and early 20th centuries wrote letters home to family and friends describing their lives there. One of these artists was John White Alexander, and here you will find letters dating from his time living in Paris during the 1890s.
Many American artists traveled to Paris, France, to further their careers. Several of the American portraitists, realists, impressionists, and abstract artists that studied, lived, and worked in Paris, France during the late 19th and early 20th centuries wrote letters home to family and friends describing their lives there. One of these artists was John White Alexander, and here you will find letters dating from his time living in Paris during the 1890s.
John White Alexander (1856-1915) was a painter, muralist, and illustrator of New York, New York. After working at a telegraph company and as an illustrator, and then studying art in Germany during the late 1870s, Alexander moved with his family to Paris in 1890. While there he was influenced by symbolism and art nouveau, and exhibited his work as part of many art societies, to great international success. His successes in Europe began to be reflected in his reception in the US, and he worked on several international exhibitions there. Alexander also became active in supporting younger American artists who wanted to exhibit in Europe, and continued to promote American art for the rest of his career. He moved back to the United States permanently in 1901.
Explore the fully digitized John White Alexander papers on the Archives of American Art website!
