GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Born into a sophisticated, literary family, Guy Pène Du Bois studied painting with William Merritt Chase and Robert Henri and became influential as an art critic for several newspapers. Du Bois's work is characterized by a caustic wit with which he observes the behavior of the high and low of New York City. Sketchy forms and shadowed lighting make it difficult to see clearly this society couple out on the town, suggesting perhaps both the loneliness possible in the middle of a crowd and the emptiness of fashionable life. Although later publicly hostile toward abstract art, Du Bois often pushed the boundaries of representation in his figural compositions, as his stylized forms are far from realistic. The subject matter, fluid brushwork, and simple background present in Mr. and Mrs. are characteristic of his paintings around 1920.
Adapted from
- William Keyse Rudolph, DMA label copy (1945.11), November 2005.
- TMS data, DMA electronic record, n.d.
NOTES
Added search dates according to Olivier's suggestion of c.1915 as the display date.
Moved text that had been in curatorial remarks to text entries.
Removed TMS object tag because rule exists.
Added entries to the bibliographic text field.
Added two 1973 exhibitions to the exhibitions text field, as well as 1978- 75 Years of Art in Dallas.
Added geographies to the artist record:
trained- NYC, 1899-1905, New York School of Art (formerly the Chase School of Art) under William Merritt Chase, James Carroll Becwith, Kenneth Hayes Miller, and Robert Henri (after 1902)
trained in- Paris, 1905-1906, enrolled at the Académie Colarossi and with Theodore Steinlen
work location- NYC, 1905-1924, writing and editing art periodicals, taught at the Art Students League (after 1921)
work location- Garne, France, 1924-1929
work locations- Stonington, CT, 1932-1950, ran an art school; 1942-1946 also teaching at Cooper Union in New York
work location- Paris, France, 1953-1955
This link no longer worked as of 3/20/2017.
Café Madrid (Portrait of Mr. and Mrs. Chester Dale), (1926)~See another example of Guy Pène Du Bois's depiction of the Dales at a restaurant. (Oil on panel, Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, FL. Bequest of John Hinkle, Nephew of Chester Dale)
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
oil
panel
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
recto
verso
man
woman
couple
red
pair
standing
social class
etiquette
hats
evening wear
tuxedo
background
brush strokes
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
Until 1944: Chester Dale, New York City
From 1945: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, gift from the above [1]
[1] The Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
- Guy Pène Du Bois: The Twenties at Home and Abroad~Betsy's Fahlman's essay for a 1994 exhibition at the Westmoreland Museum of Art (Greenburg, PA) summarizes Du Bois' career and offers additional insight on his depictions of couples.
- Guy Pène Du Bois: The 1920s~Check out Richard Armstrong's essay in the Whitney Museum of American Art's exhibition catalogue available through the Internet Archive.
- Mr. and Mrs. Chester Dale Dine Out (1924)~Read this art-lover's blog and see how Guy Pène Du Bois painted his patrons sharing an evening meal. (Oil on canvas, 30 x 40in. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Chester Dale, 63.138.1)
- Life (June 20, 1949)~Look through this 1949 Life magazine feature on Guy Pène Du Bois.
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
On the verso of this work, there is an incomplete painting presumably by Du Bois. Rather than purchase new panels, many artists chose to save money and reuse their materials for incomplete works. The image shown on the verso appears to be a single, reclining figure.
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 1945.11
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General Description
Born into a sophisticated, literary family, Guy Pène Du Bois studied painting with William Merritt Chase and Robert Henri and became influential as an art critic for several newspapers. Du Bois's work is characterized by a caustic wit with which he observes the behavior of the high and low of New York City. Sketchy forms and shadowed lighting make it difficult to see clearly this society couple out on the town, suggesting perhaps both the loneliness possible in the middle of a crowd and the emptiness of fashionable life. Although later publicly hostile toward abstract art, Du Bois often pushed the boundaries of representation in his figural compositions, as his stylized forms are far from realistic. The subject matter, fluid brushwork, and simple background present in Mr. and Mrs. are characteristic of his paintings around 1920.
Adapted from
- William Keyse Rudolph, DMA label copy (1945.11), November 2005.
- TMS data, DMA electronic record, n.d.
Fun Facts
On the verso of this work, there is an incomplete painting presumably by Du Bois. Rather than purchase new panels, many artists chose to save money and reuse their materials for incomplete works. The image shown on the verso appears to be a single, reclining figure.
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- Guy Pène Du Bois: The Twenties at Home and Abroad~Betsy's Fahlman's essay for a 1994 exhibition at the Westmoreland Museum of Art (Greenburg, PA) summarizes Du Bois' career and offers additional insight on his depictions of couples.
- Guy Pène Du Bois: The 1920s~Check out Richard Armstrong's essay in the Whitney Museum of American Art's exhibition catalogue available through the Internet Archive.
- Mr. and Mrs. Chester Dale Dine Out (1924)~Read this art-lover's blog and see how Guy Pène Du Bois painted his patrons sharing an evening meal. (Oil on canvas, 30 x 40in. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Chester Dale, 63.138.1)
- Life (June 20, 1949)~Look through this 1949 Life magazine feature on Guy Pène Du Bois.
Notes
Added search dates according to Olivier's suggestion of c.1915 as the display date.
Moved text that had been in curatorial remarks to text entries.
Removed TMS object tag because rule exists.
Added entries to the bibliographic text field.
Added two 1973 exhibitions to the exhibitions text field, as well as 1978- 75 Years of Art in Dallas.
Added geographies to the artist record:
trained- NYC, 1899-1905, New York School of Art (formerly the Chase School of Art) under William Merritt Chase, James Carroll Becwith, Kenneth Hayes Miller, and Robert Henri (after 1902)
trained in- Paris, 1905-1906, enrolled at the Académie Colarossi and with Theodore Steinlen
work location- NYC, 1905-1924, writing and editing art periodicals, taught at the Art Students League (after 1921)
work location- Garne, France, 1924-1929
work locations- Stonington, CT, 1932-1950, ran an art school; 1942-1946 also teaching at Cooper Union in New York
work location- Paris, France, 1953-1955
This link no longer worked as of 3/20/2017.
Café Madrid (Portrait of Mr. and Mrs. Chester Dale), (1926)~See another example of Guy Pène Du Bois's depiction of the Dales at a restaurant. (Oil on panel, Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, FL. Bequest of John Hinkle, Nephew of Chester Dale)
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
oil
panel
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
recto
verso
man
woman
couple
red
pair
standing
social class
etiquette
hats
evening wear
tuxedo
background
brush strokes
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
Until 1944: Chester Dale, New York City
From 1945: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, gift from the above [1]
[1] The Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
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Objects
number
Equals
1945.11
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object_notes_3_a-0204.xml.nores