American Art and Pennsylvania Impressionists

Provenance:

Surovek Gallery, Palm Beach, Florida.

Acquired directly from the above.

Private Collection.

To the present owner by bequest.

Lot Note:

The yellow dress is a recurring motif in William Glackens’s later works, often called his “Renoir” period. The garment is a metonymy for modern womanhood, defined by independence and a high sense of fashion. But beyond the obvious reference to the material culture of the Roaring Twenties, The Yellow Dress also exemplifies a pivotal shift in Glackens’ career towards the sensuousness of paint and the art form derived from it.

In The Yellow Dress, Glackens’s later colorist style is evident with warm tonal variations of yellow and red, interspersed by bursts of green and blue. The yellow dress elegantly wraps the figure and is subtly echoed in her hat, reminiscent of a halo. The indistinct background, even as it suggests drapery and possibly an exterior, recalibrates the focus on the woman, her figure a stark line splitting the painting diagonally across. Her seated posture is relaxed but her piercing gaze and crossed arms exude confidence. She is not meeting the viewer’s eyes, but seems to know she is being contemplated, almost dismissive of our presence. She is at the center of the composition, and at the center of our unrequited attention.