Susan Macdowell Eakins

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Artist's Wife and His Dog (1884-89) by Thomas Eakins, depicts Susan Macdowell Eakins and their dog Harry.

Susan Hannah Macdowell Eakins (September 21, 1851 – December 27, 1938)[1] was an American artist and wife of Thomas Eakins.

Early life

She was the fifth of eight children of a Philadelphia engraver, well known in the artistic community. She was a student of Eakins while he was an instructor at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and married him in 1884.

She was 25 when she met Eakins at the Hazeltine Gallery where his painting The Gross Clinic was being exhibited in 1876. Unlike many, she was impressed by the controversial painting and she decided to study with him at the Academy, which she attended for six years, adopting a sober, realistic style similar to her teacher’s. She was an outstanding student and winner of the Mary Smith prize for the best painting by a matriculating woman artist.[2]

Career

After their childless[3] marriage, she only painted sporadically and spent most of her time supporting her husband’s career, entertaining guests and students, and faithfully backing him in his difficult times with the Academy, even when some members of her family aligned against Eakins.

She and Eakins both shared a passion for photography, both as photographers and subjects, and employed it as a tool for their art. She also posed nude for many of his photos and took images of him. Both had separate studios in their home.

After his death in 1916, she returned to painting, adding considerably to her output right up to the 1930s, in a style that became warmer, looser, and brighter in tone.

Death

She died in 1938. It was not until 35 years after her death, in 1973, that she had her first one-woman exhibition at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.[2]

  • Corcoran Gallery
    Singing the Pathetic Song (1881) by Thomas Eakins. Susan MacDowell is the pianist.

  • Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
    Susan MacDowell Eakins (1894) by Samuel Murray.

  • Hirshhorn Museum
    Portrait of Susan MacDowell Eakins (1899) by Thomas Eakins.

  • Brooklyn Museum
    Portrait of Leroy Ireland (c. 1910) by Susan MacDowell Eakins.

  • Philadelphia Museum of Art
    Portrait of Thomas Eakins (posthumous, c. 1920-25) by Susan MacDowell Eakins.

References

  1. ↑ Lloyd Goodrich. Thomas Eakins, Volume II. Harvard Press, 1982. ISBN 0-674-88490-6. Page 283
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Art Prices, Painting Value, Art Appraisal, Art Values, Auction Prices". AskART. Retrieved 2013-11-29. 
  3. ↑ "THE REVENGE OF THOMAS EAKINS,' BY SIDNEY D. KIRKPATRICK A Life in Somber Tones". The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-11-29. 

External links

Authority control
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.