Art Blogging: Sophie Gengembre Anderson

Well, that's enough scrappin', don't you think? Pretty pictures, that's what we need. Entre Sophie Gengembre Anderson (1823-1903). She's normally classed as a pre-Raphaelite, a breed of painters I normally don't get excited over. She was British by birth, but lived a long time in both the US and France.

Yep. Every now and then, I show non-French artists. Try not to faint in surprise. There aren't many of note, but on rare occasions, the fates permit a great artist to be born outside of France. That artist, once an adult, usually then corrects the error.

Where was I? Oh yeah, Anderson. Well, she was most famous for her ability to depict draping and light in oil. Look at this here painting, why it practically glows before your eyes. It's called Take the Fair Face of Woman and it hangs in a private collection.

Anderson painted a lot of idealized domestic scenes. Sort of like if Victorian England had a Norman Rockwell. Here's a good example: Christmas Time -- "Here's the Gobbler!", from a private collection. Ah, the paradise of Christmas, with family, rest, and most importantly, more food that you can eat! Compare. Notice the level of detail on the greenery in the bottom-right corner. Isn't that amazing?






Portrait of a Young Girl, also in a private collection. Remember what I said about her handling of light? Good example. Also: perfect facial anatomy. That's hard (I've tried). Lots of artists can realistically show skin tone, but few, like Anderson, can show the bone structure beneath the skin that accurately.