Renowned American Impressionist painter Edmund C. Tarbell is in the spotlight. The most ambitious exhibit of Tarbell’s vibrant work is open daily through June 3 at Discover Portsmouth, in Portsmouth, NH,  operated by the nonprofit Portsmouth Historical Society.

Illuminating Tarbell is a unique two-part show, with the largest local gathering of Tarbell’s original work, plus a companion gallery featuring six contemporary painters working in the Tarbell style. Running through June 3, the dual exhibit also includes a lecture series, a 72-page color catalogue, and a re-creation of Tarbell’s seaside New Castle, NH studio.

Rolled up for nearly a century, "Woman With an Oar and a Gentleman" is a new highlight in the exhibit, appearing just last Friday after months of restoration work by art conservationist and guest curator Jeremy Fogg. Found in Tarbell family archives, the painting is likely a Cape Cod scene and Fogg says a similar work is in the collection of the White House, reports the Eagle-Tribune.

“This is a must-see show,” says DPC Executive Director, Kathleen Soldati. “While many know Tarbell as a Boston artist, he had close ties to the Portsmouth region. We’re bringing in works from collections all across the country, and many have never been exhibited to the public before.”

Edmund C. Tarbell (1862-1938) was a pioneer of the “Boston School” of painting at the Museum of Fine Arts. His work, evocative of 17th-century Dutch artists, is known for its rich hues and an emphasis on light and tone and delicate brushwork. Unlike previous exhibitions of Tarbell’s work, Discover Portsmouth’s show emphasizes, not just his paintings, but engravings, drawings, and oil studies. When shown in conjunction with a careful selection of the finished oil paintings, these demonstrate Tarbell’s process from conception to completion.

Illuminating Tarbell: Life and Art on the Piscataqua, the primary exhibition by curator Jeremy Fogg, fills the first floor of the Academy Gallery in a beautifully restored 1810-era building located in downtown Portsmouth. The show features nearly 60 works from the artist’s 30 years living along the Piscataqua River. This unique display captures Tarbell’s vision of his family, their friends, clients, even horses, as well as the river and the surrounding landscape. The exhibit and accompanying catalogue also document Tarbell’s life and art with family photographs, personal letters, and ephemera. A meticulous reconstruction of his studio includes cherished family furniture and studio props.

Illuminating Tarbell: Legacy in Action, the companion show, is located upstairs in the Academy balcony gallery. Curator Alastair Dacey makes the case for Tarbell’s ongoing influence as a painter and teacher. Tarbell’s impact and artistic principles are revealed in close to 50 works by six contemporary painters: Don Demers, Paul Ingbretson, Jean Lightman, Mary Minifie, Colin Page, and Alastair Dacey.

A fully illustrated catalogue, published by the organization’s Portsmouth Marine Society Press, contains essays by curators Jeremy Fogg and Alastair Dacey. The catalogue features an introduction by Susan Strickler, director of the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, NH, and a new study of Tarbell’s life in New Castle by artist Christopher Volpe.

Illuminating Tarbell runs through Friday, June 3 at Discover Portsmouth