1. 10 Jun


    Lady In Her Boudoir (1889). Julius LeBlanc Stewart (American, 1855-1919). Oil on canvas. Stewart’s father, the sugar millionaire William Hood Stewart, moved the family to Paris in 1865, and became a distinguished art collector and an early patron of Fortuny and the Barbizon artists. Julius studied under Eduardo Zamacois as a teenager, under Jean-Léon Gérôme at the École des Beaux-Arts, and later was a pupil of Raymondo de Madrazo.

    Lady In Her Boudoir (1889). Julius LeBlanc Stewart (American, 1855-1919). Oil on canvas.

    Stewart’s father, the sugar millionaire William Hood Stewart, moved the family to Paris in 1865, and became a distinguished art collector and an early patron of Fortuny and the Barbizon artists. Julius studied under Eduardo Zamacois as a teenager, under Jean-Léon Gérôme at the École des Beaux-Arts, and later was a pupil of Raymondo de Madrazo.

     

  2. 7 Jun


    The Artist’s Daughter (1927). Frederick Carl Frieseke (American, 1874-1939). Oil on canvas. Brooklyn Museum. Relatively late work in Frieseke’s career depicts his only child, Frances, one of his favorite models. She is absorbed in the private act of writing in a secluded interior illuminated subtly by sunlight filtered through blinds. Combining the artist’s figural interests with an affectionate family portrait, the painting offers an evocative image of subdued color and quiet charm.

    The Artist’s Daughter (1927). Frederick Carl Frieseke (American, 1874-1939). Oil on canvas. Brooklyn Museum.

    Relatively late work in Frieseke’s career depicts his only child, Frances, one of his favorite models. She is absorbed in the private act of writing in a secluded interior illuminated subtly by sunlight filtered through blinds. Combining the artist’s figural interests with an affectionate family portrait, the painting offers an evocative image of subdued color and quiet charm.

     

  3. 6 Jun


    Mrs. Isaac Newton Phelps Stokes (Edith Minturn), 1898. Cecilia Beaux (American, 1855-1942). Oil on canvas. Exquisitely dressed, Edith is seated with a small volume in hand-finger marking the place-just as if she might have been disturbed while reading and was determined to continue at the passage she had last left. This small detail gives some insight into the brilliant mind and the depth of the sitter. Edith would have been one of these women that subscribed to the adage- “Beauty is but skin deep.”

    Mrs. Isaac Newton Phelps Stokes (Edith Minturn), 1898. Cecilia Beaux (American, 1855-1942). Oil on canvas.

    Exquisitely dressed, Edith is seated with a small volume in hand-finger marking the place-just as if she might have been disturbed while reading and was determined to continue at the passage she had last left. This small detail gives some insight into the brilliant mind and the depth of the sitter. Edith would have been one of these women that subscribed to the adage- “Beauty is but skin deep.”

     

  4. 30 May


    Skirts Ahoy. Girl is reading magazine. Wind blows magazine, skirt, sailor hat. Gil Elvgren (American, 1914-1980). Although best known for his pin-ups, Elvgren’s work for Coca-Cola and others depicted typical normal Americans — ordinary people doing everyday things. The women Elvgren painted were never the femme fatale, the female adventuress, or somebody’s mistress.

    Skirts Ahoy. Girl is reading magazine. Wind blows magazine, skirt, sailor hat. Gil Elvgren (American, 1914-1980).

    Although best known for his pin-ups, Elvgren’s work for Coca-Cola and others depicted typical normal Americans — ordinary people doing everyday things. The women Elvgren painted were never the femme fatale, the female adventuress, or somebody’s mistress.

     

  5. 29 May


    Blue Girl Reading (1935). Frederick C. Frieseke (American, 1874-1939). Oil on canvas. Frieseke enjoyed an early reputation as a figure painter who, inspired by the figural subjects of Renoir, employed the Impressionist devices of sparkling color and dappled light. Yet many of his compositions also express a highly decorative, patterned aesthetic more akin to the works of Nabi artists like Vuillard.

    Blue Girl Reading (1935). Frederick C. Frieseke (American, 1874-1939). Oil on canvas.

    Frieseke enjoyed an early reputation as a figure painter who, inspired by the figural subjects of Renoir, employed the Impressionist devices of sparkling color and dappled light. Yet many of his compositions also express a highly decorative, patterned aesthetic more akin to the works of Nabi artists like Vuillard.

     

  6. 26 May


    A Momentary Glance. Morgan Weistling (American, born 1964). Morgan studied art at an early age with his father, a former art student. His parents met in art school and started a family. The younger of three children, Morgan began imitating his father’s drawings every night as he sat on his lap. That led to his studying the art books his father had aquired years earlier by authors such a Andrew Loomis, Vanderpole, and Bridgeman.

    A Momentary Glance. Morgan Weistling (American, born 1964).

    Morgan studied art at an early age with his father, a former art student. His parents met in art school and started a family. The younger of three children, Morgan began imitating his father’s drawings every night as he sat on his lap. That led to his studying the art books his father had aquired years earlier by authors such a Andrew Loomis, Vanderpole, and Bridgeman.

     

  7. 25 May


    Nudes Series: Roommates (1994). Roy Lichtenstein (American, 1923-1997). Relief print on Rives BFK mold-made paper. With his Nudes series, to which Roommates belongs, Lichtenstein entered uncharted territory, technically and aesthetically. The elaborate relief block printing process – individual sculptural forms were cut by hand, mounted on blocks and then printed in several stages with an offset plate printing press – makes possible subtle colour gradations through a colour being printed several times.

    Nudes Series: Roommates (1994). Roy Lichtenstein (American, 1923-1997). Relief print on Rives BFK mold-made paper.

    With his Nudes series, to which Roommates belongs, Lichtenstein entered uncharted territory, technically and aesthetically. The elaborate relief block printing process – individual sculptural forms were cut by hand, mounted on blocks and then printed in several stages with an offset plate printing press – makes possible subtle colour gradations through a colour being printed several times.

     

  8. 23 May


    In the Cafe (2008). Jerry Salinas (USA, 1967-). Salinas began to study painting at the Art Institute of Chicago, going to America Academy of Art where he majored in Illustration and Painting. He is dedicated to a wide variety of topics as well as a variety of techniques ranging from painting to digital.

    In the Cafe (2008). Jerry Salinas (USA, 1967-).

    Salinas began to study painting at the Art Institute of Chicago, going to America Academy of Art where he majored in Illustration and Painting. He is dedicated to a wide variety of topics as well as a variety of techniques ranging from painting to digital.

     

  9. 21 May


    A Pleasant Afternoon/Portrait of a Young Woman Reading. Lilian Matilda Genth (American, 1876-1953). Oil on canvas. Genth worked as a dress designer before winning the Elkins Scholarship, which allowed her to study with J.A.M. Whistler in Paris for a year. Upon her return to the US, she began painting female nudes in landscapes, for which she became well known. Later in her career, she abandoned the nude in favor of scenes from her travels across Europe and Asia.

    A Pleasant Afternoon/Portrait of a Young Woman Reading. Lilian Matilda Genth (American, 1876-1953). Oil on canvas.

    Genth worked as a dress designer before winning the Elkins Scholarship, which allowed her to study with J.A.M. Whistler in Paris for a year. Upon her return to the US, she began painting female nudes in landscapes, for which she became well known. Later in her career, she abandoned the nude in favor of scenes from her travels across Europe and Asia.

     

  10. 17 May


    Mrs. Daniel Hubbard (Mary Greene), c.1764. John Singleton Copley (American, 1738–1815). Oil on canvas. The Art Institute of Chicago. Hubbard leans against a stone ledge decorated with a relief of a cupid. The patterns for a floral needlework design under her elbow echo Mrs. Hubbard’s lace sleeves and testify to her ability to do needlework, a skill expected of wealthy young women. The luxury items she wears—olive-green silk dress, lace chemise, and choker—indicate her upper-class status.

    Mrs. Daniel Hubbard (Mary Greene), c.1764. John Singleton Copley (American, 1738–1815). Oil on canvas. The Art Institute of Chicago.

    Hubbard leans against a stone ledge decorated with a relief of a cupid. The patterns for a floral needlework design under her elbow echo Mrs. Hubbard’s lace sleeves and testify to her ability to do needlework, a skill expected of wealthy young women. The luxury items she wears—olive-green silk dress, lace chemise, and choker—indicate her upper-class status.

     

  11. 17 May


    Woman at the Piano (1955). Philip Evergood (American, 1901-1973). Oil on canvas. Smithsonian American Art Museum. At first, Woman at the Piano seems poised and sophisticated, but a closer look reveals Evergood’s satirical edge. The vase holds a fussy fern instead of flowers. The snarl of black notes on the musical score suggests ear-piercing noise rather than tuneful song. The massive grand piano is sliding across the floor as if to sweep the singer off her feet.

    Woman at the Piano (1955). Philip Evergood (American, 1901-1973). Oil on canvas. Smithsonian American Art Museum.

    At first, Woman at the Piano seems poised and sophisticated, but a closer look reveals Evergood’s satirical edge. The vase holds a fussy fern instead of flowers. The snarl of black notes on the musical score suggests ear-piercing noise rather than tuneful song. The massive grand piano is sliding across the floor as if to sweep the singer off her feet.

     

  12. 13 May


    The Front Parlor (1904). William McGregor Paxton (American, 1869-1941). Oil on canvas. Paxton’s primary subject was the woman in the domestic interior, often poetic views of lovely women of leisure, such as in The Front Parlor. The harder, more polished surfaces of his paintings — as compared to those of Tarbell and Benson — coalesce with the wealth and elegance of the pristine, hermetic interiors in which his subjects reside.

    The Front Parlor (1904). William McGregor Paxton (American, 1869-1941). Oil on canvas.

    Paxton’s primary subject was the woman in the domestic interior, often poetic views of lovely women of leisure, such as in The Front Parlor. The harder, more polished surfaces of his paintings — as compared to those of Tarbell and Benson — coalesce with the wealth and elegance of the pristine, hermetic interiors in which his subjects reside.

     

  13. 10 May


    Negro Girl Dancer (1916). Charles Demuth (American, 1883-1935). Watercolor and pencil on paper.  Demuth was captivated by the New York’s emerging music scene and often frequented nightclubs which inspired a series of watercolors. In Negro Girl Dancer, “the artist has achieved a steaminess and intensity of performance typical of such bars and nightclubs in this New York jazz era. One can almost feel the closeness of the performers to the patrons in this pre-Prohibition bar…” (A.L. Eiseman, Charles Demuth)

    Negro Girl Dancer (1916). Charles Demuth (American, 1883-1935). Watercolor and pencil on paper. 

    Demuth was captivated by the New York’s emerging music scene and often frequented nightclubs which inspired a series of watercolors. In Negro Girl Dancer, “the artist has achieved a steaminess and intensity of performance typical of such bars and nightclubs in this New York jazz era. One can almost feel the closeness of the performers to the patrons in this pre-Prohibition bar…” (A.L. Eiseman, Charles Demuth)

     

  14. 30 Apr


    Portrait in a Brown Dress (c.1908). Thomas Wilmer Dewing (American, 1851-1938). Oil on wood panel. Only Dewing would have echoed the spindly projections of a Windsor chair in the bony limbs of his sitter. And the quality of unease derives from the ominous shadows that suffuse the floor and move upward on the curtain behind the model, where they mimic the shape of her head.

    Portrait in a Brown Dress (c.1908). Thomas Wilmer Dewing (American, 1851-1938). Oil on wood panel.

    Only Dewing would have echoed the spindly projections of a Windsor chair in the bony limbs of his sitter. And the quality of unease derives from the ominous shadows that suffuse the floor and move upward on the curtain behind the model, where they mimic the shape of her head.

     

  15. 27 Apr


    Girl Reading (by a Window), 1903. Edmund Tarbell (American, Impressionism, 1862-1938). Oil on canvas. Tarbell specialized in delicately finished, pearly interiors, and devoted a significant part of his career to capturing images of young women pursuing domestic activities, such as sewing or reading, in elegantly decorated rooms filled with antiquarian or oriental objects.

    Girl Reading (by a Window), 1903. Edmund Tarbell (American, Impressionism, 1862-1938). Oil on canvas.

    Tarbell specialized in delicately finished, pearly interiors, and devoted a significant part of his career to capturing images of young women pursuing domestic activities, such as sewing or reading, in elegantly decorated rooms filled with antiquarian or oriental objects.