Luks's work reflected the restless temperament of the man himself. Born
in a poor mining district in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, the squalor of
city life never seemed to appall him, nor did he sentimentalize it. A one-time
champion amateur boxer known as "Lusty Luks," he attacked the
canvas or paper with as much forcefulness as he lived; his scenes of everyday
life are realistic and unapologetic.
|
In the early 1880s Luks studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts
under Thomas Anshutz, heir to the mantle of Eakins. From there Luks went
to the Düsseldorf Academy for more training and then branched out on
his own in London and Paris. In all, he stayed away ten years, and when
he returned to the States he took a job as an artist-reporter for the Philadelphia
Press, where he met John Sloan, Everett Shinn, and William Glackens.
In 1896 Luks |
was sent by the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin to cover the Spanish-American
conflict in Cuba.
In 1897 Luks moved to New York permanently where he continued to address
issues of social concern. Subway fits into this category,
with the well-to-do young matron, dressed up in brightly colored fur and
muff, passing by the workers, squeezed in and dressed in dingy clothes. |
