Inside the Studio: Interior Scenes of the League 1889 – Present

For the past 151 years, the studios of the Art Students League have remained at the heart of this institution, from the League’s first locations downtown by Union Square, to its current home on 57^th Street. In this exhibition, works from the Permanent Collection are gathered to display scenes from the studios of the League—from traditional figure drawing classes dating from the 19^th century to today, to satirical cartoons of the mid-20^th century. While the studios remain a part of the League that is closed to the public, the works on display here illustrate not only what occurs behind the studio doors, but also each artist’s experience of being in the studios themselves.

Included in this selection are works by both League students such as Lucia Fairchild Fuller, a student of Kenyon Cox, who created the drawing on display when she was only around 18 or 19 years of age. The words “Rah - Rah - Kenyon Cox!” written on the ceiling beam were likely there in real life, as it was typical for students and instructors to write and draw on the walls of the studios even in these early years—a practice that remains true to this day. Works by cartoonists Otto Soglow and Larry Spivack show different eras of the League, with Larry Spivack’s work in particular illustrating a humorous take on recognizable studios here on 57^th St. Recently acquired works by Isaac Pelepko and Jeremy Day round out this exhibition with contemporary drawings created in Costa Vavagiakis’s and Harvey Dinnerstein’s classes, respectively.