Portrait of Gertrude Berwind, Baroness von Boecklin

1902

PORTRAIT OF GERTRUDE BERWIND, BARONESS VON BOECKLIN by Frieda Menshausen Labriola (German, 1861-1939). The Baroness von Boecklin (1883-1929) was the daughter of Charles Frederick Berwind and Anita Hickman Berwind and a niece of Edward J. Berwind of The Elms, who acted as her ward following the premature death of his elder brother in 1890. Gertrude became the wife of Baron Rupprecht L.E.M. von Boecklin and mother of son Rupprecht B.L. ("Oakie") von Boecklin (1903-1978). The Baroness is depicted here in three-quarter length seated in a high-backed chair in a domestic interior, turned towards the viewer. She wears a beaded and metallic threaded white low-cut evening dress with a diaphanous white shawl draped over her arm and a pearl necklace around her neck. Her auburn hair is upswept in a series of waves. In the background, a potted plant stands between the chair and a window hung with sheer dotted Swiss fabric. The artist, Menshausen, has treated the scene in an Impressionistic manner with overall violet tones. The canvas is signed and dated on the lower right "F. Menshausen. L. / 1902." It is housed in a modern Rococo style giltwood frame.

German

oil on canvas

Unframed: L: 41 1/2" H: 38"

Bequest of Mrs. Anita Grosvenor McAndrews.

PSNC.11298