Title
Minnie Griswold Forbes
Object Type
Creator
Date
c. 1903
Notes
Minnie Griswold Forbes was the oldest of the children of John N.A. Griswold and Jane Emmet, original owners of the Griswold House. Minnie spent much of her youth in her Newport home. Her grandson, Griswold Forbes, of Connecticut, gave the portrait to the Newport Art Museum in 1994. The artist's fine modeling and sensuous application of color result in a warm, vivid portrayal of a lively woman.
Lydia Field Emmet was an esteemed artist when she painted her cousin Minnie around the turn of the century. Emmet came from an artistic family, and with her two sisters, enrolled at the Academie Julian in Paris, where she excelled. Following study with William Merritt Chase at the Art Students League in New York City, Emmet taught at Chase's Shinnecock Hills summer school. She commanded handsome prices for her portraits and was especially sought after for her paintings of children. Emmet maintained studios in both New York City and Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and often traversed the two locales by horseback. In her later years she used a different mode of transportation-a yellow Model T, known by her fellow Berkshires residents as the "Yellow peril," because of the artist's penchant for speeding around the hills.
Lydia Field Emmet was an esteemed artist when she painted her cousin Minnie around the turn of the century. Emmet came from an artistic family, and with her two sisters, enrolled at the Academie Julian in Paris, where she excelled. Following study with William Merritt Chase at the Art Students League in New York City, Emmet taught at Chase's Shinnecock Hills summer school. She commanded handsome prices for her portraits and was especially sought after for her paintings of children. Emmet maintained studios in both New York City and Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and often traversed the two locales by horseback. In her later years she used a different mode of transportation-a yellow Model T, known by her fellow Berkshires residents as the "Yellow peril," because of the artist's penchant for speeding around the hills.
Cultural Origin
Newport
Medium
Oil on canvas
Extent
canvas: 54 in x 40 in; frame: 62 in x 49 in
Source
Gift of Griswold Forbes
Identifier
1994.006.001
For more information about this item, please contact its owning institution.