Description:
artist holding palette and seated in front of an easel with a small painting; framed object is propped up on carpeted chair; door on the left edge of the painting and window on the right, partially covered with a red curtain

Label Text:
This presumed self-portrait at once represents and comments on the act of art making. The composition is divided into two halves by the strong vertical line of the wall. On the left, the artist is seated at her easel. Her gaze leads us to the object of her study, a framed painting or mirror propped on a carpeted chair. This may reference the two artistic traditions of copying from works of art and painting one’s self portrait. The masterful manipulation of space, sensitive rendering of light, and minute attention to surface detail draw attention to the artist’s skill.

Very little is known about Guillebaud beyond her characterization in The Dictionary of Swiss Artists (1902) as ”sentimental.“ This is her first painting to enter an American museum.

Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=SC+2019.5

Research on objects in the collections, including provenance, is ongoing and may be incomplete. If you have additional information or would like to learn more about a particular object, please email fc-museums-web@fivecolleges.edu.

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