Francis Chapin Art
American, 1899-1965
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, was one of the city’s most popular and celebrated painters in his day. Born at the dawn of the 20th Century in Bristolville, Ohio, Chapin graduated from Washington & Jefferson College near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania before enrolling at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1922. He would set down deep roots at the Art Institute of Chicago, exhibiting there over 31 times between 1926 and 1951. In 1927 Chapin won the prestigious Bryan Lathrop Fellowship from the Art Institute – a prize that funded the artist’s yearlong study trip to Europe. Upon his return to the United States, Chapin decided to remain in Chicago, noting the freedom Chicago artists have in developing independently of the pressure to conform to pre-existing molds (as was experienced by artists in New York, for example). Chapin became a popular instructor at the Art Institute, teaching there from 1929 to 1947 and at the Art Institute’s summer art school in Saugatuck, Michigan (now called Oxbow) between 1934 – 1938 (he was the director of the school from 1941-1945).
A prolific painter, Chapin produced numerous works while traveling in Mexico, France, Spain, Saugatuck and Martha’s Vineyard, where he frequently spent summers and taught at the Old Sculpin Gallery there. Chapin was best recognized for his dynamic and vibrant images of Chicago during the 1930s and 40s. Chapin was a resident of the Old Town neighborhood where he lived and kept his studio on Menomonee Street for many years. Described as a “colorful figure, nearly 6 feet 6 inches tall, and thin, and usually wearing tweeds”, it is easy to imagine Chapin at work observing the busy street life of the city.
In addition to his many exhibitions at the Art Institute of Chicago, Chapin’s work was shown during his lifetime at such institutions as the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia; the Corcoran Gallery, Washington, D.C.; the National Academy of Design, New York; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York and the Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, among others. Francis Chapin’s paintings are represented in the collections the Art Institute of Chicago; the Friedman Collection, Chicago; the Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown; the Denver Art Museum; the Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse; the Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach; the Telfair Museum of Art, Savannah and the Brooklyn Museum of Art, among others.(Biography provided by Richard Norton Gallery, LLC)
to
5
20
6
20
9
10
1
Overall Height
to
Overall Width
to
19
1
11
9
6
4
3
3
3
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
20
1
4
1
12
1
20
6,952
3,302
2,514
1,213
15
9
8
7
4
Artist: Francis Chapin
A ca 1954 Watercolor & Ink Image of a Notre Dame Football Game by Francis Chapin
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A ca. 1954 watercolor and ink on paper image of a Notre Dame football game by artist Francis Chapin.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Watercolor, Ink
Watercolor on Paper Study of a Notre Dame Football Game by Artist Francis Chapin
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A ca. 1954 watercolor of a football scrimmage at Notre Dame, by artist Francis Chapin. This was a study for a painting he created for the University in 1954. The original painting ...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Watercolor
Watercolor & Ink on Paper Image of a Notre Dame Football Game by Francis Cahpin
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A ca. 1954, watercolor and ink on paper image of a Notre Dame football game by artist Francis Chapin.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “D...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Ink, Watercolor
A ca. 1954, drawing of a Notre Dame Football Game by Artist Francis Chapin
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A ca. 1954 pastel & charcoal on paper drawing of a Notre Dame football game by artist Francis Chapin.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “D...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Charcoal, Pastel
Untitled (Martha’s Vineyard)
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A colorful view of Martha's Vineyard (Depicting Edgartown's main street) by Francis Chapin, from around 1950.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Masonite, Oil
Nantucket Steamer
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A gem of a painting depicting a Nantucket lighthouse by Francis Chapin, from around 1950.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, was...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Oil, Board
Yellow Sky at Menemsha
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A colorful view of Menemsha in Martha's Vineyard by Francis Chapin, from around 1950.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, was one...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Masonite, Oil
Vineyard Light
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A painting depicting a lighthouse in Martha's Vineyard by Francis Chapin, from around 1950.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, w...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Board, Oil
Oak Bluffs, Mass. (Martha’s Vineyard)
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A view of Oak Bluffs, MA on Martha's Vineyard by Francis Chapin, from around 1950.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, was one of...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Masonite, Oil
Untitled (Vineyard Harbor)
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A colorful view of Martha's Vineyard by Francis Chapin, from the 1930s.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, was one of the city’s most popular and celebrated painters in his day. Born at the dawn of the 20th Century in Bristolville, Ohio, Chapin graduated from Washington & Jefferson College near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania before enrolling at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1922. He would set down deep roots at the Art Institute of Chicago, exhibiting there over 31 times between 1926 and 1951. In 1927 Chapin won the prestigious Bryan Lathrop Fellowship from the Art Institute – a prize that funded the artist’s yearlong study trip to Europe. Upon his return to the United States, Chapin decided to remain in Chicago, noting the freedom Chicago artists have in developing independently of the pressure to conform to pre-existing molds (as was experienced by artists in New York, for example). Chapin became a popular instructor at the Art Institute, teaching there from 1929 to 1947 and at the Art Institute’s summer art school in Saugatuck, Michigan (now called Oxbow) between 1934 – 1938 (he was the director of the school from 1941-1945).
A prolific painter, Chapin produced numerous works while traveling in Mexico, France, Spain, Saugatuck and Martha’s Vineyard, where he frequently spent summers and taught at the Old Sculpin Gallery there. Chapin was best recognized for his dynamic and vibrant images of Chicago during the 1930s and 40s. Chapin was a resident of the Old Town neighborhood where he lived and kept his studio on Menomonee Street for many years. Described as a “colorful figure, nearly 6 feet 6 inches tall, and thin, and usually wearing tweeds”, it is easy to imagine Chapin at work observing the busy street life of the city.
In addition to his many exhibitions at the Art Institute of Chicago, Chapin’s work was shown during his lifetime at such institutions as the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia; the Corcoran Gallery, Washington, D.C.; the National Academy of Design, New York; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York and the Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, among others. Francis Chapin’s paintings are represented in the collections the Art Institute of Chicago; the Friedman Collection, Chicago; the Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown; the Denver Art Museum; the Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse; the Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach...
Category
1930s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Masonite, Oil
Edgartown Harbor
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A lithograph with pastel depicting the Edgartown Harbor on Martha's Vineyard by Francis Chapin, from around 1958.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Lithograph, Pastel
Edgartown Yacht Club
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A striking view of the Edgartown Yacht Club on Martha's Vineyard by Francis Chapin, from around 1958.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his col...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Color, Lithograph
Edgartown Harbor
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A view of Edgartown Harbor on Martha's Vineyard by Francis Chapin, from around 1958.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, was one ...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Lithograph
Afternoon Race, Edgartown
By Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A view of an afternoon race in Edgartown on Martha's Vineyard by Francis Chapin, from 1964.
Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, w...
Category
1960s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Lithograph
Untitled
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape" on th...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Watercolor, Paper
Little River
By Francis Chapin
Located in Sheffield, MA
Francis Chapin
American 1899-1965
Little River
Oil on canvas
28 by 40 in. W/frame 38 by 50 in.
Dubbed the Dean of Chicago Painters in the 1930s, 40s and 50s, Francis Chapin painte...
Category
1920s Post-Impressionist Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Oil
Untitled
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape" on th...
Category
1930s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Ink, Watercolor
Untitled (Boat Repair)
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape" on th...
Category
1940s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Watercolor, Paper
Untitled
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape" on th...
Category
1930s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Watercolor, Paper
Untitled
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape" on th...
Category
1930s Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Watercolor, Paper
Related Items
WPA Scene American Modernism 20th Century Workers Strike Realism Industrial
Located in New York, NY
WPA Scene American Modernism 20th Century Workers Strike Realism Industrial "Pawns" 16 x 20 inches,. Oil on board, c. 1930’s. Signed lower left.
Stowell Sherman...
Category
1930s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Oil, Board
The Sketch Class, Figurative Study Line Drawing
By David Rosen (b.1912)
Located in Soquel, CA
Expressive line drawing figure study featuring a group of figures in a classroom by David Rosen (Canadian, 1912-2004). Unsigned, but was acquire...
Category
Late 20th Century American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Pen, Watercolor
H 12 in W 8 in D 0.25 in
"Snow at Madison Square Park, " Bela de Tirefort, New York Snow Street Scene
By Bela de Tirefort
Located in New York, NY
Bela de Tirefort (1894 – 1993)
Snow at Madison Square Park, 1951
Oil on canvasboard
16 x 20 inches
Signed and dated lower left; signed and titled on the reverse on artist label
Prov...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Board, Oil
Mid Century Modern Abstracted Landscape, Big Sur Coast Cliffs
Located in Soquel, CA
Mid Century Modern Abstracted Landscape, Big Sur Coast Cliffs
Colorful mid-century landscape of jagged cliffs along the dramatic Big Sur coastline by an unknown artist. Unsigned. P...
Category
1950s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Oil, Cardboard, Canvas
Blue Lake
By George Marinko
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This painting is part of our exhibition America Coast to Coast: Artists of the 1940s.
Blue Lake, c. 1940s, oil on masonite, signed lower right, 20 x 36 inches, label and inscriptio...
Category
1940s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Masonite, Oil
Waiting for the Bus in a Blizzard- WPA American Scene 1938 NYC Modernism Realism
By Maurice Kish
Located in New York, NY
Waiting for the Bus in a Blizzard- WPA American Scene 1938 NYC Modernism Realism. 16 x 16 inches, Oil on board, Signed and dated 1938 lower left.
...
Category
1930s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Oil, Board
Twilight of History, Figurative American Modernist Oil Painting, Gold Green Red
By Frederick Shane
Located in Denver, CO
"Twilight of History" is an original oil on board painting by Frederick Shane (1906-1992) from 1947. Shane's reflection of the twilight of our existence is shown with three creatures...
Category
1940s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Board, Oil
Frederick ShaneTwilight of History, Figurative American Modernist Oil Painting, Gold Green Red, 1947
H 24.5 in W 28.5 in D 2.75 in
Golf Bags, Caddy with Golf Bag on His Back
By Frederick Conway
Located in Missouri, MO
Framed Size: approx 17 3/4 x 20 3/4 inches
Fred Conway (1900-1973)
"Golf Bags, Caddy with Golf Bag on His Back"
Pen/Ink/Watercolor on Paper
Site Size: approx. 10 x 13 inches
Framed Size: approx. 17 3/4 x 20 3/4 inches
A member of the faculty of the Washington University Art School from 1929 to 1970, Frederick Conway...
Category
1960s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Ink, Watercolor, Pen
Vintage Modernist Landscape Painting, Monument Valley Arizona, listed artist
Located in Baltimore, MD
Although born in Ohio at the end of the 19th century, Martin Sabransky studied art at Randolph Macon College in Virginia. He began his career path moving west, by first going to Kans...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Oil
Untitled (Farm in Winter)
By Julius M. Delbos
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This work is part of our exhibition America Coast to Coast: Artists of the 1940s
Untitled (Farm in Winter), 1940s, oil on canvas, signed lower right, 26 x 30 inches, presented in an original frame
Julius Delbos...
Category
1940s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Vintage Rockwell Kent Copy of "Vermont Winter 1921" Oil on Canvas Painting, 1960
By Rockwell Kent
Located in Baltimore, MD
This large painting is a ca. 1960 copy of a famous Rockwell Kent painting that was executed in Vermont in 1921. The work is oil on canvas and well represents the original image, tho...
Category
1960s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Oil
H 25 in W 30 in D 3 in
Untitled (Houses and Railroad Tracks)
By Harry Lane
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Untitled (Houses and Railroad Tracks), c. 1940s, oil on canvas board, signed lower right, 16 x 20 inches, presented in a newer frame
This work is part of our exhibition America Coas...
Category
1940s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Oil, Board
Previously Available Items
Untitled (Columbia Dock)
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape" on th...
Category
1940s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Crayon, Paper, Watercolor
Untitled
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape&q...
Category
1940s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Watercolor
Untitled
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape" on th...
Category
1930s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Ink, Paper, Watercolor
Untitled
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin was one of the most celebrated painters in Chicago during his lifetime. When he was a young art student, Valley House founder, Donald Vogel, painted with "Chape&q...
Category
1930s American Modern Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Paper, Watercolor
Untitled
By Francis Chapin
Located in Dallas, TX
Francis Chapin had an active exhibition history with over 24 major museum and gallery exhibitions including two at the Art Institute of Chicago (1928 & 1952) and one at the Museum of...
Category
1930s Francis Chapin Art
Materials
Watercolor
Francis Chapin art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Francis Chapin art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Francis Chapin in paint, oil paint, masonite and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the modern style. Not every interior allows for large Francis Chapin art, so small editions measuring 10 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Frank Wilcox, Alfred Bendiner, and Harold Haydon. Francis Chapin art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $850 and tops out at $12,500, while the average work can sell for $1,800.