James Herbert (American, 1896 – 1970). "Backstage Actress in Roman Garb".Watercolor on paper. Dimensions: 13” x 11”. Framed & matted under glass: 18" x 15". If you think of Elizabeth Taylor in the movie Cleopatra you can imagine her entourage of women dressed in this Roman Legion costume when Julius Caesar or Mark Antony came to Egypt. Herbert painted his share of backstage theatrical actresses during his career but it is clear that many are the creations in his own art studio. Looking over a body of his work he uses a standard format of an exotically costumed figure sitting on a chair with elaborate theatrical drapes. It offered the artist the opportunity to paint a myriad of designs and figures. He trained at the Arts Student’s League with Reginald Marsh. Marsh produced a remarkable body of bawdy figurative work of sailors, showgirls and Coney Island beach bodies. Clearly, Herbert was aware of the work of Marsh but Herbert’s work appears to have a European sensibility, more likely a continuum of showgirl images he witnessed in Paris by Toulouse Lautrec. James Herbert was a highly educated and privileged artist born in New York City, who lived in Manhattan and studied at Columbia University during his youth. He attended the Art Students League of New York from 1920-1923, and again from 1926-1929. Herbert became a member of the Society of Illustrators and went on to do commercial work for advertisers and fashion magazine. He later relocated in 1947 to Providence, RI to teach at the Rhode Island School of Design and become a member of the Providence Art Club and Newport Art Association.

Good

13 x 11 in

5 lb