Cecilia Beaux vs J. S. S.

SB Wang · 07-24-2003, 12:25 PM

The authors of Seven Women: Great Painters state that Cecilia Beaux's works are better than J.S.Sargent's. Do you think so?

SB Wang · 08-16-2003, 11:44 AM

I saw a 19th century woman artist's work at Smithsonian, I think her skill is better than most of her contemporary artists, but she died in poverty.

After three decades of struggle, for a person and a country, a woman artist, Zhou Sicong was evaluated as the No.1 artist in traditional Chinese painting. (She died in her middle age by disease).

Chris Saper · 08-16-2003, 01:21 PM

Dear SB,

Could you provide any internet links for the artists you mention?

Thanks.

Timothy C. Tyler · 08-23-2003, 10:58 AM

I've only seen 3 or 4 of C Beaux's works that knock me out. She tried pointedly to paint like him, not the other way around. I've seen hundreds of awesome Sargents. "Man with a Cat"(below by Beaux) is great- especially in person. Saying she was better is pretty much just a indefensible opinion...and you know what they say about opinions.

Timothy C. Tyler · 08-23-2003, 11:08 AM

P. S. An interesting aspect to consider when reading books about poverty-stricken painters is how much work did they produce? Vermeer is about the only well know painter that produced just a few paintings. Production means wide distribution which means wide exposure which normally means sales which cancel poverty; hopefully.

Jeff Fuchs · 08-23-2003, 11:18 AM

Quote:

"Man with a Cat"(below by Beaux) is great, especially in person.

Wow. That is a great painting. It seems to incorportate every lesson I've learned from SOG artists. Now, how did Beaux access SOG with no electricity?

Timothy C. Tyler · 08-23-2003, 12:33 PM

Jeff, the edges are so soft, the paint rather thin-I was impressed-the figures are just smudges when viewed up close.

Lynn T. McCallum · 08-23-2003, 02:12 PM

It just goes to show that sometimes, less is more!

Cecilia was a wonderful painter. She could capture the essence of her subjects and their personality with just a few strokes of her brush. Just what was important, how simple can that be?

Oh! To be able to work the magic she did.

She may have studied Sargent's style but she definitely worked that into her own! Don't you think?

Yes! Sargent was a great painter.

Cecilia was just as good of a painter and if given the choice of being able to paint like either, I would have to choose Cecilia. I would love to have her sensitivity to pick up on the things that she did!

Here is a bit of history for y'all!

Cecilia was actually in big demand. She studied in Paris. 1889 she came back to America and started her portrait career in Philadelphia. She did some portrait work for Theodore Roosevelt and his family so her work didn't ever really go unrecognized. Cecilia won many life time achievement awards, one being from Eleanor Roosevelt, the national Achievement Gold Medal Award of the Chi Omega Fraternity. Cecilia never married, but you might say she was married to art and her career as an artist. In 1924 Cecilia fell on some ice in Paris, where she was visiting and broke a hip. In those days there was no such thing as Disability/Social Security, being crippled and in pain it made it hard for her to continue her career as she had. She went on to write a book, 'Backgrounds with Figures' and it was published in 1930.(Does anyone know where to find a copy, besides Ebay)? It wasn't because she wasn't in demand anymore or no one was interested in her art, indeed it was the opposite, poor Cecilia as talented as she was, just couldn't do the work anymore. In 1942 she died at the ripe old age of 87, in poverty, but because of a life altering injury. Had it not been for her injury, I suspect that she would have been painting successfully till her death.

She may have been forgotten for the past 50 years or so, but people are starting to realize what an artist she truly was again. I suspect that a lot of folks and museums are going to be dusting her off and showing her off more often! I hope to see more of her hanging around.

I would like to mention a lot of this information was from an article written by Melissa Crawford for the Portrait Society of Atlanta's 'Folio'. I just wanted to pass this information on to y'all.

Well, after all that I guess you really know who my vote really swings towards!

Lynn T. McCallum · 08-23-2003, 02:38 PM

Here is a link to an intesting essay! http://www.tfaoi.com/aa/3aa/3aa300.htm.

Under the Skin: Reconsidering Cecilia Beaux and John Singer Sargent. by Sarah Burns

Read, Learn, Enjoy!

Cecilia Beaux's works are all over the internet and there are many reproduction out there that you can obtain.

Timothy C. Tyler · 08-26-2003, 06:12 PM

I too have had a hard time finding her images. There are normally two parts to a lasting, profitable career in painting (besides luck etc.) quality and the other we sometimes forget; quantity. There are always artists doing a few nice works each year with financial troubles. I don't know her details and couldn't open the link, but I have always wished she had produced MORE; such are the magic of the few gems I've seen.