Skip to main contentProvenanceThe artist
Mabel Conkling Estate
Post Road Gallery, Larchmont, New York
Christie's New York, New York, December 7, 1984, lot 222A
Berry-Hill Galleries, Inc., New York, New York
Daniel J. Terra Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1987
Terra Foundation for the Arts, Chicago, Illinois, 1999
Exhibition HistoryPublished References
Frederick MacMonnies
(American, 1863–1937)
Mabel Conkling
1904
Oil on canvas
Image: 86 1/2 x 45 in. (219.7 x 114.3 cm)
Frame: 92 1/2 x 50 3/4 in. (235.0 x 128.9 cm)
Frame: 92 1/2 x 50 3/4 in. (235.0 x 128.9 cm)
Credit LineTerra Foundation for American Art, Daniel J. Terra Collection
Object number1999.88
SignedLower left: Mac Monnies.
InterpretationMabel Conkling displays the glamorous finery of her pale-blue and white dress and feathered hat as she stands commandingly before a tapestry that decorated the drawing room of Frederick MacMonnies's studio-home. The rich tints of the forest scene depicted in the weaving throw into relief the figure's light attire, pale complexion, and dark hair. The tall, narrow format of the painting emphasizes her majestic bearing. If not for the fact that Conkling's gaze is turned away from the viewer, as if she is above acknowledging our admiration, she would seem to look down from a slightly elevated position.
Presented in MacMonnies's portrait as a wealthy woman of fashion, Mabel Viola Harris Conkling (1871–1966) was the wife of Paul Conkling (1871–1926), MacMonnies's friend, assistant, and former pupil. She also studied with MacMonnies and, after his death, would make a memorial medallion portrait of him. As formal and flattering as any commissioned society portrait, this work was widely exhibited as a demonstration of the artist's talents as a painter. It was completed in fourteen sittings in July and August of 1904 in the rural Normandy village of Giverny, where the home of MacMonnies and his wife Mary Fairchild MacMonnies (later Low), also a painter, served as a social center for a lively community of international artists. While most painters in Giverny focused on landscapes and figures posed outdoors, MacMonnies produced conventional indoor portraits during the brief period he painted.
MacMonnies was a successful sculptor, but in the late 1890s nervous exhaustion brought about by the pressures of work and multiple romantic entanglements induced him temporarily to abandon sculpture for painting. Virtually all his works in this medium are portraits. Mabel Conkling was one of several of his students who posed for him. Disappointed both by the critics' poor reception of his paintings exhibited in New York in 1903 and the relative paucity of portrait commissions that came his way, the artist returned to sculpture in the summer of 1904 just as he was working on Conkling's portrait.
For MacMonnies, the shift from sculpture to portrait-painting was facilitated by his thorough training in the modeling of the human figure, the basis of a nineteenth-century sculptor's education. Although idealized figures and allegorical subjects dominated his work as a sculptor, he modeled portraits throughout his career. For painted portraits such as this, however, MacMonnies emulated the works of other painters, notably the tall, elegant, full-length single-figure portraits of his esteemed acquaintances James McNeill Whistler and John Singer Sargent.
Presented in MacMonnies's portrait as a wealthy woman of fashion, Mabel Viola Harris Conkling (1871–1966) was the wife of Paul Conkling (1871–1926), MacMonnies's friend, assistant, and former pupil. She also studied with MacMonnies and, after his death, would make a memorial medallion portrait of him. As formal and flattering as any commissioned society portrait, this work was widely exhibited as a demonstration of the artist's talents as a painter. It was completed in fourteen sittings in July and August of 1904 in the rural Normandy village of Giverny, where the home of MacMonnies and his wife Mary Fairchild MacMonnies (later Low), also a painter, served as a social center for a lively community of international artists. While most painters in Giverny focused on landscapes and figures posed outdoors, MacMonnies produced conventional indoor portraits during the brief period he painted.
MacMonnies was a successful sculptor, but in the late 1890s nervous exhaustion brought about by the pressures of work and multiple romantic entanglements induced him temporarily to abandon sculpture for painting. Virtually all his works in this medium are portraits. Mabel Conkling was one of several of his students who posed for him. Disappointed both by the critics' poor reception of his paintings exhibited in New York in 1903 and the relative paucity of portrait commissions that came his way, the artist returned to sculpture in the summer of 1904 just as he was working on Conkling's portrait.
For MacMonnies, the shift from sculpture to portrait-painting was facilitated by his thorough training in the modeling of the human figure, the basis of a nineteenth-century sculptor's education. Although idealized figures and allegorical subjects dominated his work as a sculptor, he modeled portraits throughout his career. For painted portraits such as this, however, MacMonnies emulated the works of other painters, notably the tall, elegant, full-length single-figure portraits of his esteemed acquaintances James McNeill Whistler and John Singer Sargent.
Mabel Conkling Estate
Post Road Gallery, Larchmont, New York
Christie's New York, New York, December 7, 1984, lot 222A
Berry-Hill Galleries, Inc., New York, New York
Daniel J. Terra Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1987
Terra Foundation for the Arts, Chicago, Illinois, 1999
Exhibition History
Salon of the Société Nationale des Artistes Francais, Paris, France, 1905.
Exhibition, The Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois, 1905, no. 219.
101st Annual Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 22–March 3, 1906, no. 769 (as Mrs. D. P. B. C.).
Exhibition of Paintings, "Portrait of Mrs. Paul Conkling," Carnegie Institute of Arts, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1907.
A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 21–June 21, 1987. [exh. cat.]
On Process: Studio Themes, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, January 13–March 4, 2001.
Mary et Frederick MacMonnies, un atelier à Giverny (Mary and Frederick MacMonnies, a Studio in Giverny), Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 1, 2001 (modified form of An Interlude in Giverny: The French Chevalier by Frederick MacMonnies at the Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, October 24, 2000–June 24, 2001). [exh. cat.]
Artistic Communities: Mary MacMonnies Low and Frederick MacMonnies in Chicago and Giverny, Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, July 12–October 7, 2001 (modified form of An Interlude in Giverny: The French Chevalier by Frederick MacMonnies at the Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, October 24, 2000–June 24, 2001 and Mary et Frederick MacMonnies, un atelier à Giverny [Mary and Frederick MacMonnies, a Studio in Giverny] at the Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 1, 2001). [exh. cat.]
The French Experience: American Artists at Giverny, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, July 27–October 20, 2002.
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. [exh. cat.]
Twarze Ameryki: Portrety z kolekcji Terra Foundation for American Art, 1770–1940 (Faces of America: Portraits from the collection of the Terra Foundation for American Art, 1770–1940), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France and Miedzynarodowe Centrum Kultury (International Cultural Center), Crakow, Poland (organizers). Venue: International Cultural Center, Crakow, Poland, February 15–May 7, 2006. [exh. cat.]
Impressionist Giverny: A Colony of Artists, 1885–1915, Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venues: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 1, 2007; San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, CA, July 21–October 14, 2007. [exh. cat.]
Impressionist Giverny: The Americans, 1885–1915, Selections from the Terra Foundation for American Art, Terra Foundation for American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venues: Florence Griswold Museum of Art, Old Lyme, Connecticut, May 3–July 27, 2008; Albany Institute of History & Art, Albany, New York, August 23, 2008–January 4, 2009.
Monet and the Artists of Giverny: The Beginning of American Impressionism, The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, Japan with the Terra Foundation for American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizers). Venues: Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, Kitakyushu, Japan, October 9–November 28, 2010; The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, Japan, December 7, 2010–February 17, 2011; The Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art, Okayama, Japan, February 25–April 10, 2011. [exh. cat.]
Exhibition, The Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois, 1905, no. 219.
101st Annual Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 22–March 3, 1906, no. 769 (as Mrs. D. P. B. C.).
Exhibition of Paintings, "Portrait of Mrs. Paul Conkling," Carnegie Institute of Arts, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1907.
A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 21–June 21, 1987. [exh. cat.]
On Process: Studio Themes, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, January 13–March 4, 2001.
Mary et Frederick MacMonnies, un atelier à Giverny (Mary and Frederick MacMonnies, a Studio in Giverny), Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 1, 2001 (modified form of An Interlude in Giverny: The French Chevalier by Frederick MacMonnies at the Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, October 24, 2000–June 24, 2001). [exh. cat.]
Artistic Communities: Mary MacMonnies Low and Frederick MacMonnies in Chicago and Giverny, Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, July 12–October 7, 2001 (modified form of An Interlude in Giverny: The French Chevalier by Frederick MacMonnies at the Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, October 24, 2000–June 24, 2001 and Mary et Frederick MacMonnies, un atelier à Giverny [Mary and Frederick MacMonnies, a Studio in Giverny] at the Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 1, 2001). [exh. cat.]
The French Experience: American Artists at Giverny, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, July 27–October 20, 2002.
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. [exh. cat.]
Twarze Ameryki: Portrety z kolekcji Terra Foundation for American Art, 1770–1940 (Faces of America: Portraits from the collection of the Terra Foundation for American Art, 1770–1940), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France and Miedzynarodowe Centrum Kultury (International Cultural Center), Crakow, Poland (organizers). Venue: International Cultural Center, Crakow, Poland, February 15–May 7, 2006. [exh. cat.]
Impressionist Giverny: A Colony of Artists, 1885–1915, Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venues: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 1, 2007; San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, CA, July 21–October 14, 2007. [exh. cat.]
Impressionist Giverny: The Americans, 1885–1915, Selections from the Terra Foundation for American Art, Terra Foundation for American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venues: Florence Griswold Museum of Art, Old Lyme, Connecticut, May 3–July 27, 2008; Albany Institute of History & Art, Albany, New York, August 23, 2008–January 4, 2009.
Monet and the Artists of Giverny: The Beginning of American Impressionism, The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, Japan with the Terra Foundation for American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizers). Venues: Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, Kitakyushu, Japan, October 9–November 28, 2010; The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, Japan, December 7, 2010–February 17, 2011; The Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art, Okayama, Japan, February 25–April 10, 2011. [exh. cat.]
Christie's New York, New York (Sale GLORIA-5794, December 7, 1984): lot 222A. Ill. lot 222A, p. 212 (black & white).
Atkinson, D. Scott et al. A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art. Edited by Terry A. Neff. (exh. cat., Terra Museum of American Art). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1987. Pl. T-141, p. 250 (color).
Gerdts, William H., et al. Lasting Impressions: American Painters in France, 1865–1915. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text p. 63; ill. p. 63 (black & white).
Gerdts, William H., et al. Impressions de toujours: les peintres américains en France, 1865–1815. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text p. 63; ill. p. 63 (black & white).
Smart, Mary. A Flight with Fame: The Life and Art of Frederick MacMonnies, With a Catalogue Raisonné and a Checklist of Paintings by E. Adina Gordon. Madison, Connecticut: Sound View Press, 1996. Text pp. 216, 328; ill. p. 215 (black & white), no. 79, p. 328 (black & white).
Cartwright, Derrick R., Joyce Henri Robinson, and Mary S. Smart. Un atelier à Giverny. Mary et Frederick MacMonnies. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2001. Text pp. 102, 111; fig. 8, p. 101 (color).
Robinson, Joyce Henri, Derrick R. Cartwright and E. Adina Gordon. An Interlude in Giverny. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2001. Text p. 78; fig. 25, p. 79 (color).
Lévy, Sophie, et al. Twarze Ameryki: Portrety z kolekcji Terra Foundation for American Art, 1770–1940/Faces of America: Portraits from the collection of the Terra Foundation for American Art, 1770–1940. (exh. cat. International Cultural Center). Cracow, Poland: International Cultural Center, 2006. Ill. p. 97 (color).
Bourguignon, Katherine M. et al. Impressionist Giverny: A Colony of Artists, 1885–1915. (exh. cat. Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for American Art, 2007. Text p. 209 (checklist); cat. p. 141 (color).
Bourguignon, Katherine M., Shunsuke Kijima and Sanjiro Minamikawa. Monet and the Artists of Giverny: The Beginning of American Impressionism. (exh. cat. Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, and The Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art). Fukuoka, Japan: The Nishinippon Shimbun, 2010. Text cat. no. 65, pp. 118 (in Japanese), 188 (in English); ill. p. 119 (color).
Atkinson, D. Scott et al. A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art. Edited by Terry A. Neff. (exh. cat., Terra Museum of American Art). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1987. Pl. T-141, p. 250 (color).
Gerdts, William H., et al. Lasting Impressions: American Painters in France, 1865–1915. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text p. 63; ill. p. 63 (black & white).
Gerdts, William H., et al. Impressions de toujours: les peintres américains en France, 1865–1815. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text p. 63; ill. p. 63 (black & white).
Smart, Mary. A Flight with Fame: The Life and Art of Frederick MacMonnies, With a Catalogue Raisonné and a Checklist of Paintings by E. Adina Gordon. Madison, Connecticut: Sound View Press, 1996. Text pp. 216, 328; ill. p. 215 (black & white), no. 79, p. 328 (black & white).
Cartwright, Derrick R., Joyce Henri Robinson, and Mary S. Smart. Un atelier à Giverny. Mary et Frederick MacMonnies. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2001. Text pp. 102, 111; fig. 8, p. 101 (color).
Robinson, Joyce Henri, Derrick R. Cartwright and E. Adina Gordon. An Interlude in Giverny. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2001. Text p. 78; fig. 25, p. 79 (color).
Lévy, Sophie, et al. Twarze Ameryki: Portrety z kolekcji Terra Foundation for American Art, 1770–1940/Faces of America: Portraits from the collection of the Terra Foundation for American Art, 1770–1940. (exh. cat. International Cultural Center). Cracow, Poland: International Cultural Center, 2006. Ill. p. 97 (color).
Bourguignon, Katherine M. et al. Impressionist Giverny: A Colony of Artists, 1885–1915. (exh. cat. Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for American Art, 2007. Text p. 209 (checklist); cat. p. 141 (color).
Bourguignon, Katherine M., Shunsuke Kijima and Sanjiro Minamikawa. Monet and the Artists of Giverny: The Beginning of American Impressionism. (exh. cat. Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, and The Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art). Fukuoka, Japan: The Nishinippon Shimbun, 2010. Text cat. no. 65, pp. 118 (in Japanese), 188 (in English); ill. p. 119 (color).