Eulabee Dix
Encyclopedia
Eulabee Dix was an American
artist
, who favoured the medium of watercolours on ivory
to paint portrait miniatures. During the early 20th century, when the medium was at the height of fashion, she painted many prominent figures, including Europe
an nobility and famous actresses of the day.
, to Mary Bartholomew and Horace Wells Dix, She had an early interest in art, and her talents and love of reading were encouraged from an early age. Her family moved several times during her early years due to financial setbacks. During her teens, Dix went to live with wealthy family members in St. Louis, where she attended Washington University, and spent a year studying oil painting and life drawing at the St. Louis School of Fine Art. Her work there was recognised with two medals. Dix returned to her parents in 1895, when they set up home in Grand Rapids, Michigan
. There she taught art classes, and was inspired by the daughter of an Episcopal
minister to paint portrait miniatures.
, where she first studied with William Merritt Chase
, however she left after one week, partly due to Chase's focus on oil painting
, and also because she disagreed with his philosophy of colour. She went on to continue her studies at the Art Students League
with George Bridgman
, of whom she did approve. She also underwent tuition with William J. Whittemore, who taught her the technique of painting on ivory. Whittlemore was a founder of the recently established American Society of Miniature Painters (ASMP), where she exhibited some of her work. She also studied under Isaac A. Josephi, who was the first president of the ASMP.
Dix took a tiny studio apartment
at 152 West 57th Street, on the 15th floor of one of the Carnegie Hall
towers. Here she worked on commissions for many prominent New Yorkers, including the actress Ethel Barrymore
and photographer Gertrude Käsebier
. By coincidence her neighbour, Frederick S. Church, was also from Grand Rapids, and he helped her make contacts within New York artistic circles. Miniaturist Theodora Thayer, whom Dix associated with and admired, also had a studio nearby.
In 1904 Dix met Minnie Stevens Paget, a close friend of Edward VII
, and wife of Arthur Paget, a high ranking officer in the British Army, who later reached the rank of General, and was knighted. They became close friends, and it was to be near Paget that Dix began to divide her time between New York and London
. When in London, she took up residence in an up-market residential hotel near Stanhope Gardens, in Kensington
. Through her connection with Paget, Dix received commissions from many prominent figures, including the Holywood actress Ethel Barrymore
, whom she painted in Philadelphia in around 1905, fashion designer Countess Fabricotti, as well as several from Paget herself.
In 1906 Dix held her first exhibition, Exhibition of Portrait Miniature by Miss Eulabee Dix, at the Fine Art Society
on London
's New Bond Street, where she exhibited 24 works. That same year she also held shows at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, and the Walker Art Gallery
in Liverpool
.
In New York Dix had the opportunity to paint writer Samuel Langhorne Clemens
, better known by his pseudonym
Mark Twain. In 1908 she did the last painting of him from life.
Dix herself was the subject of two portraits by renowned artist Robert Henri
, to whom she was introduced in 1910 by prominent Irish
artist John Butler Yeats
. For one of these, she posed for a full length portrait in her wedding dress.
She was also photographed on at least four occasions by her friend Gertrude Kasebier
.
, after a three year engagement. The marriage produced two children, Philip and Joan.
John Butler Yeats, referring to Eulabee Dix's strong personality, wrote to his daughter Lily the day after the wedding:
The marriage ended in 1925, after 15 years. It had been a strained marriage, partly because both of them had pursued successful careers in their chosen field. The situation was made worse when Dix aborted a pregnancy against her husband's wishes. Becker ended the marriage by declaring his love for another woman.
She won a medal at the Paris Salon
in 1927, and also in New York and Philadelphia in 1929
Unfortunately, the stock market crash of 1929, and the resulting Depression
was to affect Dix's work, as many of her former clientele had seen their fortunes wiped out. Frustrated with her stagnant career, she became estranged from her son, Philip, who went to live with his father.
Dix moved to East 57th Street, where she lived for around seven years. Despite now living in a working class neighbourhood, she continued to dress in extravagant outfits, always wearing a hat and carrying a cane. When miniaturism went out of favour in the 1930s, she gave lectures on the art of miniature painting. She also adapted her techniques, turning to floral still life paintings, and large oil works.
In 1937, with her daughter now married, Dix moved to Southern California
, where at first she lived on a ranch near Santa Barbara
. In an attempt to find emotional stability, she briefly joined a community of monks led by Ananda Ashrama, who preached religious tolerance and simple living. Despite her impatience, the experience reportly had a calming effect on her.
Dix took a job with the Plas-Tex Corporation painting radium
on airplane parts. During this time she suffered from exposure to radiation
, which resulted in a small pension.
Following this, she worked in a laundry, and joined the International Association of Machinists, drilling holes in airplane parts.
She was justifiably proud of her part in helping the war effort, but her painting all but stopped. Despite this, she exhibited in the miniature division of the California Art Club
.
Her last portrait commission, in 1951, was from Kaufman Thuma Keller, who at the time was Chairman of the Board of the Chrysler Corporation. However deteriorating eyesight meant she was unable to finish the painting.
In 1956, aged 78, Dix sold her possessions and moved to Lisbon, Portugal
where in 1958 an exhibition spanning her life's work was held at Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga. It was her last exhibition, and newspapers in New York and Portugal carried articles.
Dix returned to the United States in 1961, moving in with her son and his wife in Woodbury
, Connecticut
. On June 14, 1961, the day before she was due to be moved to a care home, Eulabee Dix died. She was interred at Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis.
, New York; Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon; the National Museum of American Art, Washington DC; and the National Portrait Gallery
, Washington DC.
The National Museum of Women in the Arts
has in its permanent collection over 86 of her paintings. They also hold an archive of letters, journals and other manuscripts relating to Dix's life, as will as her palette and brush, her awards, and a pencil sketch by John Butler Yeats
. The archive, known collectively as the Eulabee Dix Papers, was entrusted to the museum in 1989 by Joan Becker Gaines, Dix's daughter.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, who favoured the medium of watercolours on ivory
Ivory
Ivory is a term for dentine, which constitutes the bulk of the teeth and tusks of animals, when used as a material for art or manufacturing. Ivory has been important since ancient times for making a range of items, from ivory carvings to false teeth, fans, dominoes, joint tubes, piano keys and...
to paint portrait miniatures. During the early 20th century, when the medium was at the height of fashion, she painted many prominent figures, including Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an nobility and famous actresses of the day.
Early life
Dix was born in Greenfield, IllinoisGreenfield, Illinois
Greenfield is a city in Greene County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,179 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Greenfield is located at ....
, to Mary Bartholomew and Horace Wells Dix, She had an early interest in art, and her talents and love of reading were encouraged from an early age. Her family moved several times during her early years due to financial setbacks. During her teens, Dix went to live with wealthy family members in St. Louis, where she attended Washington University, and spent a year studying oil painting and life drawing at the St. Louis School of Fine Art. Her work there was recognised with two medals. Dix returned to her parents in 1895, when they set up home in Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
. There she taught art classes, and was inspired by the daughter of an Episcopal
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
minister to paint portrait miniatures.
New York studies
In 1899 Dix moved to New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where she first studied with William Merritt Chase
William Merritt Chase
William Merritt Chase was an American painter known as an exponent of Impressionism and as a teacher. He is also responsible for establishing the Chase School, which later would become Parsons The New School for Design.- Early life and training :He was born in Williamsburg , Indiana, to the family...
, however she left after one week, partly due to Chase's focus on oil painting
Oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil—especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body...
, and also because she disagreed with his philosophy of colour. She went on to continue her studies at the Art Students League
Art Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
with George Bridgman
George Bridgman
George Brant Bridgman was a Canadian-American painter, writer, and teacher in the fields of anatomy and figure drawing. Bridgman taught anatomy for artists at the Art Students League of New York for some 45 years....
, of whom she did approve. She also underwent tuition with William J. Whittemore, who taught her the technique of painting on ivory. Whittlemore was a founder of the recently established American Society of Miniature Painters (ASMP), where she exhibited some of her work. She also studied under Isaac A. Josephi, who was the first president of the ASMP.
Dix took a tiny studio apartment
Studio apartment
A studio apartment, also known as a studio flat , efficiency apartment or bachelor/bachelorette style apartment, is a small apartment which combines living room, bedroom, and kitchen or kitchenette into a single room...
at 152 West 57th Street, on the 15th floor of one of the Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
towers. Here she worked on commissions for many prominent New Yorkers, including the actress Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors.-Early life:Ethel Barrymore was born Ethel Mae Blythe in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the second child of the actors Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Drew...
and photographer Gertrude Käsebier
Gertrude Käsebier
Gertrude Käsebier was one of the most influential American photographers of the early 20th century. She was known for her evocative images of motherhood, her powerful portraits of Native Americans and her promotion of photography as a career for women.-Early life :Käsebier was born Gertrude...
. By coincidence her neighbour, Frederick S. Church, was also from Grand Rapids, and he helped her make contacts within New York artistic circles. Miniaturist Theodora Thayer, whom Dix associated with and admired, also had a studio nearby.
Gaining recognition
Even with a limited income, Dix made a conscious effort to dress fashionably, and held regular Friday afternoon gatherings at her home, where she showed off her work to potential buyers.In 1904 Dix met Minnie Stevens Paget, a close friend of Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
, and wife of Arthur Paget, a high ranking officer in the British Army, who later reached the rank of General, and was knighted. They became close friends, and it was to be near Paget that Dix began to divide her time between New York and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. When in London, she took up residence in an up-market residential hotel near Stanhope Gardens, in Kensington
Kensington
Kensington is a district of west and central London, England within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. An affluent and densely-populated area, its commercial heart is Kensington High Street, and it contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington.To the north, Kensington is...
. Through her connection with Paget, Dix received commissions from many prominent figures, including the Holywood actress Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors.-Early life:Ethel Barrymore was born Ethel Mae Blythe in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the second child of the actors Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Drew...
, whom she painted in Philadelphia in around 1905, fashion designer Countess Fabricotti, as well as several from Paget herself.
In 1906 Dix held her first exhibition, Exhibition of Portrait Miniature by Miss Eulabee Dix, at the Fine Art Society
Fine Art Society
The Fine Art Society is an art dealership with two premises, one in New Bond Street, London and the other in Edinburgh . It was formed in 1876...
on London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's New Bond Street, where she exhibited 24 works. That same year she also held shows at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, and the Walker Art Gallery
Walker Art Gallery
The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England, outside of London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group, and is promoted as "the National Gallery of the North" because it is not a local or regional gallery but is part...
in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
.
In New York Dix had the opportunity to paint writer Samuel Langhorne Clemens
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
, better known by his pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Mark Twain. In 1908 she did the last painting of him from life.
Dix as a subject
Robert Henri
Robert Henri was an American painter and teacher. He was a leading figure of the Ashcan School in art.- Early life :...
, to whom she was introduced in 1910 by prominent Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
artist John Butler Yeats
John Butler Yeats
John Butler Yeats was an Irish artist and the father of William Butler Yeats, Lily Yeats, Lollie Yeats and Jack B. Yeats. He is probably best known for his portrait of the young William Butler Yeats which is one of a number of his portraits of Irishmen and women in the Yeats museum in the National...
. For one of these, she posed for a full length portrait in her wedding dress.
She was also photographed on at least four occasions by her friend Gertrude Kasebier
Gertrude Käsebier
Gertrude Käsebier was one of the most influential American photographers of the early 20th century. She was known for her evocative images of motherhood, her powerful portraits of Native Americans and her promotion of photography as a career for women.-Early life :Käsebier was born Gertrude...
.
Marriage
On December 22, 1910 Dix married Alfred Leroy Becker, a New York lawyerLawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, after a three year engagement. The marriage produced two children, Philip and Joan.
John Butler Yeats, referring to Eulabee Dix's strong personality, wrote to his daughter Lily the day after the wedding:
- I once told her [Dix] I would not envy the man that she married, for she would be sure to devour him. She has a clinging way like ivy, which we know always kills the tree to which it attaches itself
The marriage ended in 1925, after 15 years. It had been a strained marriage, partly because both of them had pursued successful careers in their chosen field. The situation was made worse when Dix aborted a pregnancy against her husband's wishes. Becker ended the marriage by declaring his love for another woman.
Changing fortunes
Following her divorce in 1925, Dix sailed with her children to France, and divided her time between Europe and New York.She won a medal at the Paris Salon
Paris Salon
The Salon , or rarely Paris Salon , beginning in 1725 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. Between 1748–1890 it was the greatest annual or biannual art event in the Western world...
in 1927, and also in New York and Philadelphia in 1929
Unfortunately, the stock market crash of 1929, and the resulting Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
was to affect Dix's work, as many of her former clientele had seen their fortunes wiped out. Frustrated with her stagnant career, she became estranged from her son, Philip, who went to live with his father.
Dix moved to East 57th Street, where she lived for around seven years. Despite now living in a working class neighbourhood, she continued to dress in extravagant outfits, always wearing a hat and carrying a cane. When miniaturism went out of favour in the 1930s, she gave lectures on the art of miniature painting. She also adapted her techniques, turning to floral still life paintings, and large oil works.
In 1937, with her daughter now married, Dix moved to Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
, where at first she lived on a ranch near Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
. In an attempt to find emotional stability, she briefly joined a community of monks led by Ananda Ashrama, who preached religious tolerance and simple living. Despite her impatience, the experience reportly had a calming effect on her.
Declining years
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Dix took a job with the Plas-Tex Corporation painting radium
Radium
Radium is a chemical element with atomic number 88, represented by the symbol Ra. Radium is an almost pure-white alkaline earth metal, but it readily oxidizes on exposure to air, becoming black in color. All isotopes of radium are highly radioactive, with the most stable isotope being radium-226,...
on airplane parts. During this time she suffered from exposure to radiation
Radiation
In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...
, which resulted in a small pension.
Following this, she worked in a laundry, and joined the International Association of Machinists, drilling holes in airplane parts.
She was justifiably proud of her part in helping the war effort, but her painting all but stopped. Despite this, she exhibited in the miniature division of the California Art Club
California Art Club
The California Art Club , founded in 1909, is one of the oldest and most active arts organizations in California. It celebrated its centennial in the spring of 2010. The California Art Club originally evolved from the Painters Club of Los Angeles...
.
Her last portrait commission, in 1951, was from Kaufman Thuma Keller, who at the time was Chairman of the Board of the Chrysler Corporation. However deteriorating eyesight meant she was unable to finish the painting.
In 1956, aged 78, Dix sold her possessions and moved to Lisbon, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
where in 1958 an exhibition spanning her life's work was held at Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga. It was her last exhibition, and newspapers in New York and Portugal carried articles.
Dix returned to the United States in 1961, moving in with her son and his wife in Woodbury
Woodbury, Connecticut
Woodbury is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 9,198 at the 2000 census. The town center is also designated by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place . Woodbury was founded in 1672....
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. On June 14, 1961, the day before she was due to be moved to a care home, Eulabee Dix died. She was interred at Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis.
Legacy
Dix’s work hangs in several institutions including the Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
, New York; Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon; the National Museum of American Art, Washington DC; and the National Portrait Gallery
National Portrait Gallery (United States)
The National Portrait Gallery is an art gallery in Washington, D.C., administered by the Smithsonian Institution. Its collections focus on images of famous individual Americans.-Building:...
, Washington DC.
The National Museum of Women in the Arts
National Museum of Women in the Arts
The National Museum of Women in the Arts , located in Washington, D.C. is the only museum solely dedicated to celebrating women’s achievements in the visual, performing, and literary arts. NMWA was incorporated in 1981 by Wallace and Wilhelmina Holladay...
has in its permanent collection over 86 of her paintings. They also hold an archive of letters, journals and other manuscripts relating to Dix's life, as will as her palette and brush, her awards, and a pencil sketch by John Butler Yeats
John Butler Yeats
John Butler Yeats was an Irish artist and the father of William Butler Yeats, Lily Yeats, Lollie Yeats and Jack B. Yeats. He is probably best known for his portrait of the young William Butler Yeats which is one of a number of his portraits of Irishmen and women in the Yeats museum in the National...
. The archive, known collectively as the Eulabee Dix Papers, was entrusted to the museum in 1989 by Joan Becker Gaines, Dix's daughter.
Further reading
- Ridley, Jo Ann (1997). Looking for Eulabee Dix: The Illustrated Biography of an American Miniaturist. USA: Natl Museum of Women in the Arts. ISBN 0940979373