Robert Henri was born in
Cincinnati, Ohio in 1865, and died in 1929. Best known as a member of the Ash Can movement. He studied art at both the
Pennsylvania Academy of Art and the
Ecole des Beaux Arts. After his schooling in
Paris, he came back to
Philadelphia in 1891, and began teaching at the Women's School of Design there.
Heavily influenced by the prominant realists of the day, most notably
Thomas Eakins, Henri saw art as a "social force," and encouraged students of the Ash Can School to use their art to realistically influence the world around them. He especially favored urban scenes. Artists influenced by his work include
Edward Hopper and
George Bellows. In 1898, Henri moved to
New York City, and began working at the
New York School of Art. When
John Sloan, one of Henri's students, became the editor of a local art journal, The Masses, the Ash Can style became more widely known, thus forwarding the career not only of Henri, but of Bellows,
Rockwell Kent, and
Robert Minor, as well.
The Armory Show in 1913 included several works by Henri, and was inspired by him and many of his like-minded contemporaries. Henri later taught at the
Ferrer Center and the
Arts Students League, where he taught until just before his death. He published one influential book,
The Art Spirit, in 1923.
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