The Chess Players

Eakins’s father watches friends playing chess in a Philadelphia room. A Latin inscription honours him. In 1881 the picture became the Met’s first accepted gift from a living artist, connecting a family subject with the early history of the museum.

The left player bends over the board. His posture conveys concentrated looking and thought.

The seated player on the right considers the pieces. The pause between them belongs to thinking through a move.

The painter’s bearded father stands behind the players. He participates in the gathering as an observer.

Light and dark chess pieces occupy the table. A small playing surface gathers several adults’ attention.

A decanter and glasses stand on a side table. Ordinary objects keep the intellectual activity within a domestic setting.

A dark cat sits on the red patterned carpet. The animal completes the room’s inhabited setting.

Eakins often portrayed Philadelphia physicians, scientists, musicians and athletes. An interest in skill and concentration appears here through a domestic game observed within his own circle.