Childe Hassam’s “Washington Arch, Spring” (1890)
Photo of Washington Square Arch (present-day)
Shown above are Childe Hassam’s “Washington Arch, Spring,” painted in 1890, and my present-day photograph of the same scene of the Washington Square Arch. Although much has changed, there are still a number of similarities between the scene depicted in Hassam’s painting and the scene captured in my photo. The first detail shared between the painting and photograph is the Washington Square Arch itself. In both the painting and photo, the distance from the eye of the viewer to the arch is the same, allowing the viewer to see the details on upper façade of the arch. The position of the arch is the same in Hassam’s painting and my photo—towards the upper right corner of the scene. Another detail that suggests Hassam’s painting and the photo depict the same scene is the location of the vanishing point, which is near the bottom of the arch’s right leg. In addition, there appear to be what I interpreted as red brick buildings behind the arch in Hassam’s painting, which are also present in the modern-day photo. Although there have been many changes to the area over time, such as the lack of trees and a road running through the arch, there are still shared details in both the painting and photo that suggests the two show the same scene.
Audriana Zablan
You have even managed to capture the shadow lines across the road, indicating that your photograph was taken at the same time of day as the artist’s eye captured this view. Well done.