Edmund Greacen

Edmund Greacen (1876–1949) had a familiar-sounding college experience: four unserious years at NYU spent chasing women and waffling about rather than rigorously preparing for post-graduation. The Spanish-American War was going full steam when he received his diploma and, seeking both purpose and adventure, he planned to enlist. His father, however, would have none of it, instead taking him around the world on a ship selling shoes. When he finally returned to the states, Greacen knew what he wanted to do: he’d become an artist. 

Greacen established himself as an accomplished Impressionist interpreter of women, gardens, harbors, and landscapes awash in an ethereal light, sometimes giving the effect of an otherworldly land, other times a fond memory fading away. A student of William Merritt Chase, Greacen traveled to Spain, Holland, and France (including stops in Paris and Giverny, where he briefly met Claude Monet) with his wife, Ethol Booth (also an artist, and who frequently appeared in her husband’s work). Greacen set up a studio in New York City upon the pair’s return; he would go on to help found the Manhattan School of Art and the Grand Central School of Art (which he ran and taught at for 20 years). Greacen and Ethol were also members of the famed artists’ colony in Old Lyme, Connecticut, during its heyday as a haven for American Impressionists.