Young Woman in Black

Young Woman in Black was painted in 1902 by Robert Henri (pronounced “hen-rye”). He was born Robert Henry Cozad in Cincinnati in 1865 but later changed his name after his father killed a man in a dispute over cattle. Henri began as an Impressionist but later in his career gave that up and focused on art as journalism and tried to make his paintings “as real as mud.” He became one of the founders of the Ashcan School, a group of loosely-connected artists who attempted to portray the real, gritty side of New York City.

Young Woman in Black is a portrait of Jesseca Penn, a dancer and artists’ model from Des Moines, Iowa. I think she looks like she’s waiting for someone. My wife thinks she looks hard and cold in the painting and prefers the portrait by Louis Loeb (below right).

Henri said Penn was his favorite model because “she was tall, had a small waist and, like both my wives, she was a redhead.” Henri also used her as his model for the painting below left, which is titled Jesseca Penn in Black with White Plumes.

Penn modeled for many artists at the turn of the last century. Daniel Chester French used her likeness on the doors he created for the Boston library. Edwin H. Blashfield included her in his murals for the state capitols of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa (bottom — she’s the woman on the wagon seat). One of Penn’s four husbands was artist Louis Loeb who painted her portrait several times, including Jesseca in 1905. Penn studied acting and even appeared on Broadway in two plays. She later moved to Wisconsin where she died, in 1957, probably of a stroke.

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