George Luks

George Luks (1867-1933), American painter and graphic artist. He was born in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and educated at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and, in Germany, at the Düsseldorf Academy of Art. During the rebellion in Cuba (1895-1896), Luks served as a war correspondent and artist for the Philadelphia Bulletin. Later, for the New York World, he drew the comic strip Hogan's Alley. He turned to serious art and painted vigorously realistic scenes of New York slums. In 1908, after one of his paintings had been rejected for exhibition by the National Academy of Design, Luks exhibited with seven other young artists. The group, called The Eight, rebelled against the academic painting of their day. Five members of this group, including Luks, became associated with the group known as the Ashcan school. Among the best-known paintings by Luks are The Spielers (1905, Addison Gallery, Andover, Massachusetts) and The Wrestlers (1905, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts).