Elizabeth Nourse: New Salon Societaire

"Enfants de Penmarc'h" by Elizabeth Nourse

"Elizabeth Nourse showed four oils and four works on paper in the 1901 New Salon, at which exhibition Carolus-Duran, the incumbent president, announced that she had been elected a 'societaire' in the category of drawing, pastel, and watercolor. She was said to be the first American woman, and only the second female, to be so honored. Nourse was elated by the news and was deluged with letters, flowers, fruits, and even a case of champagne from her Parisian friends. This recognition not only added to her reputation in the eyes of the public, but permitted her to have works on paper hung without examination by the jury, and to serve on the jury itself for this category. By 1904 she was elected 'societaire' in oil painting as well, which meant that she could enter six oils and six works on paper without submitting them to the jury.

"La Mere" by Elizabeth Nourse, 1888

"La Petite Soeur" by Elizabeth Nourse, 1902

It was on her return to Penmarc'h in the summer of 1901 that Nourse probably painted 'La petite soeur,' a beautifully composed variation on the mother and child theme. It is instructive to compare this work to her first Salon painting, 'La mere,' to understand the development in Nourse's style. Studio highlights and a dark, spacious background characterize the earlier example, whereas the natural light in 'La petite soeur' reveals the entire shallow space into which the figures are compressed. Certain elements of both paintings remain similar, such as the triangular grouping of the figures, but the vivid contrasts of color in the later work and the oblique view of the cropped figures suggest a more experimental approach. It is obvious that Nourse brightened her palette over the years, adopted a more vigorous method of applying pigment, and redesigned her paintings to give them a less formal, more impromptu effect.

'La petite soeur,' 'Enfants de Penmarc'h,' and 'Dans l'ombre a Penmarc'h' were shown in 1904 at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in Saint Louis. Louise wrote proudly that it was a great honor - many American artists were represented by one or possibly two paintings, but those with three had to be approved by a unanimous vote of the jury. Nourse also received a silver medal at the exposition."

To be continued 

(Excerpts from "Cincinnati Societaire" by Mary Alice Heekin Burke in "Elizabeth Nourse, 1859-1938: A Salon Career)