Katherine Keenum

BLOG TIP. Sonja not only attempts to build a frame, she regularly stretches her own canvases. To see how it’s done, click on Darren Rousar’s blog post, Stretching Primed Canvas.

Given Sonja’s friendship with sculptors, disregard of clothes, and brawn, is it any wonder that I exclaimed “Sonja!” when I ran across this image? I love imagining her sitting on the floor while she’s building her big picture frame for a Salon submission—although she would be in trousers.

The pose fits  Read More 

In 1878–1880, the period of Where the Light Falls, submissions to the annual Salon were judged by an elected jury of artists. Anyone whose work had been accepted for previous Salons could vote, and the jurors were generally the most distinguished (and most conservative) artists of their day. Serving was an honor, but  Read More 

Blog tip: A garden with a Japanese theme plays a part in my work-in-progress. So does feminism. It tickled me, therefore, to find this seed packet and read today’s post at It’s About Time on pioneering seedswoman Carrie H. Lippincott.

When I ran across this illustration early in my research, I knew Jeanette must ride in an omnibus when she delivered her Salon entry. Omnibuses, in fact, became a minor motif in the novel for no particular thematic reason; I just like them. But the tension involved in submitting work to the Salon, its importance  Read More 

Blog tip:Yesterday, my garden club met at my house. Today, this image appeared in a post at It’s About Time. Perfect!

To read more about the artist, Jane Sutherland (who was new to me), click here. Read More 

While I was imagining Jeanette’s painting of a vestibule in the Renicks’ house—the one Carolus-Duran commends and is accepted for the Salon—I had in mind the work of Walter Gay. During my research, I read about him and his wife, Matilda in A Charmed Couple by William Rieder.

What a pleasant life they led!

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Yesterday's image of women gilders reminded me of the cut-outs I made after reading Anthea Callen’s chapter, “Framing the Debate,” in her indispensable book  Read More 

Blog tip: This French image of women workers gilding picture frames is reposted from a post on women in the picture framing business in England at The Frame Blog. Frames were expensive, which is why  Read More 

Tennyson’s “Lady of Shalott” was the first poem I can remember choosing myself to memorize for school, and I still sometimes murmur, On either side the river lie/Long fields of barley and of rye …. When Jeanette is worried  Read More