The Twin Birches

Willard L. Metcalf was one of the earliest American artists to embrace the Impressionist mode. While studying at the Academie Julian in Paris in 1884, Metcalf painted landscapes in a lightened palette. The following summer, at Grez-sur-Loing, he worked with other Americans who were also painting en plein-air in the French manner. Between 1886 and 1888, Metcalf stayed at various times in Giverny, where Claude Monet resided and which had become a center for young American artists interested in landscape. In 1898, Metcalf was a founding member of Ten American Painters, a group of artists who withdrew from the Society of American Artists to exhibit independently. Metcalf moved to New York in 1890 and earned a living as an illustrator. In 1895, he turned again to landscape painting and from the point forward specialized in landscapes. "TheTwin Birches" was executed in 1908, while Metcalf was staying on Leete's Island near Guilford, Connecticut. It was first shown at the Pennsylvania Academy's annual exhibition in 1909, at which time it was purchased for the permanent collection. This painting and others done on Leete's Island convey the regenerative and comforting powers of nature, which underlie much of the appeal of Impressionist landscape painting.