Reynolds Beal

b 1867; d 1951) Born in 1867, Reynold Beal is considered one of the finest American Impressionists. He studied naval architecture at Cornell before formally studying art under William Merritt Chase. His naval background and interest in yachting manifested itself in his paintings of maritime scenes, though he also experimented with watercolor sketches of carnival and circus themes. He was adept at capturing the movement of air and quality of light with vigorous brushwork and a bright palette, even drawing comparisons with Van Gogh and Chagall. Beal was a founding member of the Society of Independent Artists and he traveled with fellow painters Ernest Lawson and Childe Hassam, working in New England, the Caribbean, Central America, Europe, and on the West Coast. He did little painting toward the end of his life due to illness though, and he died in Rockport, Massachusetts in 1951