Robert Henri
In 1916, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, the visionary founder of the Whitney Museum in New York, enlisted the talents of Robert Henri, a leading figure among urban Realist painters. Henri and his contemporaries had upended the New York art scene just a decade earlier with their striking depictions of everyday people and the ordinary aspects of city life.
Mrs. Whitney's unconventional attire and self-assured demeanor defied the norms of her era, especially for a woman of her social standing. Through this portrait, Henri ingeniously transformed the conventional representation of a reclining female figure (typically a nude courtesan or the goddess Venus) into a striking portrayal of the archetypal "modern" woman.
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P.S. Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney was an extraordinary woman, who left a lasting impact on the American art world. If you want to learn more about her, see our list of five great female art patrons in history! And if you want to discover more stories about famous female art collectors, check out the articles below!