La France Croisée

Romaine Brooks, La France Croisée, 1914, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1970.69
Romaine Brooks, La France Croisée, 1914, oil on canvas, 45 3⁄4 x 33 1⁄2 in. (116.2 x 85.0 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1970.69

Artwork Details

Title
La France Croisée
Artist
Date
1914
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
45 3⁄4 x 33 1⁄2 in. (116.2 x 85.0 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of the artist
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Landscape — France
  • Figure female — knee length
  • Occupation — medicine — nurse
  • Landscape — coast
Object Number
1970.69
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1970.69

Artwork Description

In La France Croisée, Brooks voiced her opposition to World War I and raised money for the Red Cross and French relief organizations. Ida Rubinstein was the model for this heroic figure posed in a nurse's uniform, with cross emblazoned against her dark cloak, against a windswept landscape outside the burning city of Ypres. This symbolic portrait of a valiant France was exhibited in 1915 at the Bernheim Gallery in Paris, along with four accompanying sonnets written by Gabriele D'Annunzio. The gallery offered reproductions for sale as a benefit to the Red Cross. For her contributions to the war effort, the French government awarded Brooks the Cross of the Legion of Honor in 1920. This award is visible as the bright red spot on Brooks's lapel in her 1923 Self-Portrait.

The Art of Romaine Brooks, 2016

Works by this artist (1036 items)

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William H. Johnson, Breakdown with Flat Tire, ca. 1940-1941, oil on plywood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.587
Breakdown with Flat Tire
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oil on plywood
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William H. Johnson, Chain Gang, ca. 1939, oil on plywood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.675
Chain Gang
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William H. Johnson, Midnight Sun, Lofoten, 1937, oil on burlap, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.907
Midnight Sun, Lofoten
Artist
Date1937
oil on burlap
On view
William H. Johnson, Lamentation, ca. 1944, oil on fiberboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.981
Lamentation
Artist
Dateca. 1944
oil on fiberboard
On view

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Stop 140: La France Croisee

La France Croisée
1914, oil on canvas

ROMAINE BROOKS
Born: Rome, Italy 1874– Died: Nice, France 1970

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