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1924 Romaine Brooks Born: Rome, Italy 1874 Died: Nice, France 1970 oil on canvas 50 1/8 x 30 1/8 in. (127.3 x 76.4 cm.) Smithsonian American Art Museum Gift of the artist 1966.49.6 Not currently on view
Hear more about Una, Lady Troubridgefrom American Art staff
British sculptor and writer Una, Lady Troubridge (1887-1963) is best remembered for her numerous translations from French and Italian, and is credited with introducing the French novelist Colette to English readers. She also wrote a biography of her longtime partner, Marguerite "John" Radclyffe Hall, author of the 1928 classic The Well of Loneliness. In 1908, Una married Admiral Sir Ernest Thomas Troubridge, but the union ended in 1915, the same year she met Hall.
Hall introduced Troubridge to artist Romaine Brooks, who captured her in this 1924 portrait. The tailored man's morning suit conceals her feminine figure, and her pose suggests absolute control; note how Troubridge grasps one of the dog's collars. Brooks intended the portrait to be a caricature of her friend as a headstrong, demanding woman, and noted in a letter that this was "a sign of the age which may amuse future feminists."
For more information about this work visit the Luce Foundation Center.
Animal - dog - dachshund
Dress - accessory - eye wear
Occupation - other - aristocrat
Portrait female - Troubridge, Una
painting
paint - oil
fabric - canvas
Born: Rome, Italy 1874 Died: Nice, France 1970
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