From 1886 to 1916, Hassam made regular summer visits to Appledore, the largest of nine rugged islands that make up the Isles of Shoals about ten miles off the coast of New Hampshire. Drawn to the island by its natural beauty and leisure activities, Hassam was also attracted by the salon and garden of the poet and writer Celia Laighton Thaxter, whose family owned the resort hotel and who welcomed writers, musicians, and artists to the flower-filled parlor of her cottage. Hassam's illustrations of Thaxter's garden adorn her book "An Island Garden," published in 1894 just before her death. Hassam had built a studio home on Appledore and continued to visit after Thaxter's death, although he no longer painted its lush floral landscapes, concentrating instead on images of rocks and sea. In "Bathing Pool, Appledore" he depicted the resort life of the island in the foreground, including swimmers in the pool area in front of colorful bathhouses and strollers in the midday sunshine. Beyond the vacationers stretches a benign sea studded with the domical Babb's Rock and other granite outcroppings, skillfully conveyed by the artist using an elevated viewpoint, active brush work, and a light, bright palette.

This text was adapted by Janet Comey from Erica Hirshler, "Impressionism Abroad: Boston and French Painting," exhibition catalogue, Royal Academy of Arts, 2005.

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