Skip to main contentProvenanceThe artist
Margo Pollins Schab, Inc., New York, New York
Terra Foundation for the Arts Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1996
Exhibition HistoryPublished References
Walt Kuhn
(American, 1877–1949)
Mirabel
1925
Lithograph
Image: 14 11/16 x 9 1/2 in. (37.3 x 24.1 cm)
Sheet: 18 x 12 13/16 in. (45.7 x 32.5 cm)
Sheet: 18 x 12 13/16 in. (45.7 x 32.5 cm)
Credit LineTerra Foundation for American Art, Daniel J. Terra Collection
Object number1996.56
SignedIn graphite lower right: Walt Kuhn
InterpretationMirabel is Walt Kuhn's lithograph image of a shapely brunette, dressed in a circus trapeze costume and with a large bow adorning her hair, as she stands holding a curtain with her upraised left hand. Posed in profile with her right hand on her hip, Mirabel boldly glances over her shoulder at the artist—and the viewer. Kuhn concentrated on the model's appearance rather than her inner character; his primary interest was depicting a figure within a room setting. With a lithographic crayon applied to the stone, Kuhn drew several systems of parallel diagonal lines and fleck strokes to articulate the various interior surfaces and textures of the window, wall, wooden table, patterned carpet, and drapery that surround the figure. The model's body, meanwhile, is simply outlined with only minimal shading to suggest the rounded contours of her limbs.
Most of Kuhn's paintings, drawings, and prints reflect his lifelong interest in the backstage and on-stage life of performers, including those in vaudeville, theater, Wild West shows, and the circus. In 1925, after he nearly died from an acute stomach ulcer, Kuhn re-evaluated his artistic goals. That summer, he and his family went to Europe, and he made this lithograph while in Paris. In 1927, impressions of this print were included in group exhibitions in New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia, but few were sold: of the edition of fifty impressions, thirty-eight still remained in the artist's possession in 1936. Little is known of his activity as a printmaker, which yielded more than thirty prints. Both self-possessed and self-consciously on display, the performer in Mirabel anticipates Kuhn's haunting portrayals of clowns, such as Clown With Drum (TF 1992.172), for which he remains best known.
Most of Kuhn's paintings, drawings, and prints reflect his lifelong interest in the backstage and on-stage life of performers, including those in vaudeville, theater, Wild West shows, and the circus. In 1925, after he nearly died from an acute stomach ulcer, Kuhn re-evaluated his artistic goals. That summer, he and his family went to Europe, and he made this lithograph while in Paris. In 1927, impressions of this print were included in group exhibitions in New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia, but few were sold: of the edition of fifty impressions, thirty-eight still remained in the artist's possession in 1936. Little is known of his activity as a printmaker, which yielded more than thirty prints. Both self-possessed and self-consciously on display, the performer in Mirabel anticipates Kuhn's haunting portrayals of clowns, such as Clown With Drum (TF 1992.172), for which he remains best known.
Margo Pollins Schab, Inc., New York, New York
Terra Foundation for the Arts Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1996
Exhibition History
L'Amérique et les modernes, 1900–1950 (American Moderns, 1900–1950), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, July 25–October 31, 2000. [exh. cat.]
Visages de l'Amérique: de George Washington à Marilyn Monroe (Faces of America: From George Washington to Marilyn Monroe), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–October 31, 2004 (on exhibit partial run: April 1–May 3, 2004 and July 5–October 31, 2004). [exh. cat.]
Visages de l'Amérique: de George Washington à Marilyn Monroe (Faces of America: From George Washington to Marilyn Monroe), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–October 31, 2004 (on exhibit partial run: April 1–May 3, 2004 and July 5–October 31, 2004). [exh. cat.]
Cartwright, Derrick R. and Paul J. Karlstrom. American Moderns, 1900–1950. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2000. Text p. 61 (checklist). [specific reference to Terra print]
Cartwright, Derrick R. and Paul J. Karlstrom. L'Amérique et les modernes, 1900–1950. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2000. Text p. 61 (checklist). [specific reference to Terra print]
Cartwright, Derrick R. and Paul J. Karlstrom. L'Amérique et les modernes, 1900–1950. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2000. Text p. 61 (checklist). [specific reference to Terra print]