The Green Boathouse

The Green Boathouse appears to have been done in the early 1920s and may depict a location in Conway, New Hampshire, where the Glackens family vacationed. His choice of outdoor leisure activity as the focus of the painting is a recurring characteristic of his mature work, and one that lent itself to a direct, spontaneous rendering. His debt to the impressionists can be seen in the intense colors, the energetic brushwork and textured surface. Although Glackens spent increasingly long periods of time in France during the waning years of his life, his works earned praise from critics for their so-called American qualities. This was undoubtedly a reflection of the artist's well-developed sense of the national psyche, honed during decades of observation as an illustrator and painter.