The Ashcan School

In art, the term "school" usually refers to a group of artists who work in similar style. But the painters of the so-called Ashcan School were even more closely bound than that. They all studied under the same teacher, Robert Henri, and were greatly influenced by him. One of his paintings is seen here.
Henri was an Ohio-born artist who painted mainly portraits. He used strong colors and sharp contrasts of light and dark---executed with loose, quickly applied brush strokes---to create a realistic study. He never flattered his subjects, but tried to catch them "to the life". His students---John Sloan, Everett Shinn, William Glackens, George Luks, and George Bellows---used the same spontaneous style to portray real life in New York City in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Bellows was a talented athlete. He gave up the chance to to become a professional baseball player when he became a serious art student.
They were called the Ashcan School because there was no aspect of city life they wouldn't paint, including the grimy alleys where ashcans were kept. Each artist had his own special interests. Sloan favored bustling street scenes. Shinn loved the theater and circuses. Luks painted colorful characters and the down-and-out, while Bellows often depicted sporting events, especially boxing matches. But the real subject for all the Ashcan School painters was the diverse, vital city itself.