John Sloan (American, 1871–1951) was born in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania in 1871 and moved with his family to Philadelphia in 1876. As a teenager, Sloan worked for a bookseller and print dealer while attending evening drawing classes and studying etching from books. Sloan began his career as an illustrator for newspapers and magazines with the Philadelphia Inquirer and later the Philadelphia Press. Sloan moved to New York in 1904 with many of his fellow artists and friends and became an exhibiting member of the Ashcan group. Sloan began teaching at the Art Students League in 1914 and was a valued teacher to many students, including Alexander Calder, Reginald Marsh and Barnett Newman. He continued to work and exhibit, and also published a book of his teachings in 1939 called Gist of Art. Sloan died in New Hampshire in 1951.
Sloan is known for showing the lives of working class people, especially amidst the backdrop of Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side. Working for newspapers, he developed the ability to quickly memorize scenes from on the street to later draw in the studio, giving his art impressive detail for real-life moments. Sloan was interested in “gritty” subject matter, often shunned by the elite and considered inappropriate for art, including tenements, crowds, and working-class people. He was politically active in the Progressive Movement and a member of the Socialist Party. His commitment to social reform can be seen in his honest and sympathetic depiction of common people.
9 works
9 works
