Childe Hassam

Italian Day, 1918

In 1916, Charles Hassam began a series of about 30 paintings depicting Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue decorated with flags. The city frequently held parades in response to World War I, and the artist’s studio on West 57th Street afforded him an opportunity to observe these festive displays.

Hassam studied French impressionism in Paris during the 1880s, and was directly influenced by Claude Monet’s depictions of Bastille Day. The pageantry recorded in Italian Day, 1918 commemorated the third anniversary of the Italian declaration of war against Austria-Hungary in May 1915.

American, Italian and Red Cross flags are painted side by side in Hassam’s image, representing the cooperation of Allied forces. The vertical thrust of skyscrapers asserts America’s formidable ambition and modernity.