Edmund Charles Tarbell studied at the then newly formed School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.  He later returned as formidable teacher who helped make the school an important fixture in American art education of the early twentieth century. Tarbell was considered an American Impressionist who asserted the importance of the figure within the traditional yet expressive landscape. He taught many artists represented in the Brenau University Permanent Collection including Eleanor Parke Custis (1897-1983), Margaret Fitzhugh Brown (1884-1972), Marguerite Stuber Pearson (1898-1978), William Kaula (1871-1953) and Aldro Thompson Hibbard (1886-1972).

When not teaching, the artist ventured out and away from the studio for scenery, yet he also relied upon his family members as models.  Considered one of the finest drawings executed by the artist, Young Woman with a Hat (Mary Tarbell) features the artist’s daughter. This beautifully rendered drawing is a wonderful example of the artist’s portraiture work.