Anshutz, Thomas Pollock

Anshutz began his artistic training at the National Academy of Design in New York. In 1876, he moved to Philadelphia to enroll at PAFA, where he studied under the great realist painter Thomas Eakins. By 1881, Anshutz was offered a faculty position at PAFA and quickly distinguished himself as a teacher. He succeeded Eakins as professor of painting and drawing after Eakins was forced to resign. Anshutz was in turn an important mentor to a diverse array of artists, particularly those who came to be known as the Pennsylvania Impressionists and the members of the Ashcan School.