Her Chum

Charlotte Harding’s artistic talent was noticeable from an early age, and while still a teenager she was encouraged by a family friend to pursue this interest professionally. Her parents were less enthusiastic but allowed her to apply to the Philadelphia School of Design for Women (now Moore College of Art). She was accepted and earned a scholarship in 1889.

It was very difficult for a woman to enter the art profession and the future for women artists was often uncertain. The art organizations and auxiliary groups in Philadelphia at the time were exclusively for men until the founding of the Plastic Club, organized by and for women in 1897. Harding was a founding member of the club, as well as a student at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and was enrolled in Howard Pyle’s illustration class at Drexel. She achieved national recognition as an illustrator for her bold graphics, decorative linework and flat color patterns.

This illustration was published in "Harper’s Bazar" in July 1903, as part of a series of works by twelve representative American illustrators entitled "Stories Without Words."