Distinguished Artist Series

Maxfield Parrish, 1870-1966

by Alma Gilbert

Maxfield Parrish, circa 1960, Collection of the Author

Every hundred or years or so we find an artist whose talent and art make a statement that leaves an indelible mark in the consciousness of the generations that come in contact with his work. Maxfield Parrish is such an artist.

Fred Maxfield Parrish (MP to his family, friends and close associates) was born July 25, 1870 in Philadelphia to Stephen Parrish, a well known artist and etcher and his wife Elizabeth Bancroft Parrish. Young Maxfield was a descendant of generations of beloved Philadelphia Quaker physicians. His father Stephen had been the first to break away from medicine or pharmacy and into the bohemian world of the professional artist. Young Parrish had all the advantages that his comfortably well-off family could offer, including summer painting trips with his father visiting the major museums of Europe during his teens. He and Stephen remained close all their lives and were warmly devoted to one another.

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