John White Alexander

John White Alexander (1856-1915) was an American portrait painter, extremely successful in his day bu little known today.

From Wikipedia:

[H e moved] to New York City and quickly achieved great success in portraiture, numbering among his sitters Oliver Wendell Holmes, John Burroughs, Henry G. Marquand, R.A.L. Stevenson, and James McCosh, the president of Princeton University.

His first exhibition in the Paris Salon of 1893 was a brilliant success and was followed by his immediate election to the Société Nationale des Beaux Arts. In 1889 he painted for Mrs. Jeremiah Milbank a well-received portrait of Walt Whitman and one of her husband, Jeremiah Milbank. In 1901 he was named Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, and in 1902 he became a member of the National Academy of Design, where he served as president from 1909 to 1915. He was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He received the gold medals of the Paris Exposition (1900) and the World's Fair in St. Louis (1904).

Contemplation

Green Dress

Portrait of Mrs. John W. Alexander

Study in Green and Black

Repose

Japanese Art

Japanese art, usually in the form of lithographs, are some of the most beautiful and intriguing art works in the world. There are two prominent masters of the art. Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) is most famous for “Under the Wave off Kanagawa” (often called “The Great Wave off Kanagawa”), part of his 36 Views of Mount Fuji series. The second painter whose works I like is Kawase Hasui (1883-1957). He is often referred to as the "painter of clouds," but I much prefer his winter scenes. I would call him the "painter of snow."

After visiting Japan (where I visited the Hokusai Museum), I also discovered an artist whose paintings decorate the Ninomaru Palace located in Nijo Castle in Kyoto. Tan’ yu (1602-1674) excelled at painting pine trees. The execution of pine needles and trunk are exceptional, but the asymmetrical balance is unmatched. Alamy has an image of one of his best.

Apart from paintings, Japanese architecture and furniture are also impressive. In the Ninomaru Palace I saw shelving (chigaidana) that was asymmetrical and well balanced. Unfortunately, as in the case of the pine tree paintings by Tan’ yu above, no photography was allowed inside the castle.

Hokusai - Under the Wave off Kanagawa

Kawase Hasui - Lake Teganuma

Kawase Hasui - Shiba Zojo Temple

Kawase Hasui - Miyajima in Snow

Kawase Hansui - Snow at Sinkyō Bridge, Nikkō