Featured Kathryn Leone Wood 1920's Watercolor Portrait of a Woman

I purchased this painting the other day at a local consignment shop. It was nice that the information was on the back, however I think some of it is not correct. I believe the person who wrote it may have partially mixed it up with another person. The statement about the etchings confused me, I only found paintings. It was nice to see that the artist was from my home town, Kalamazoo, and that she was involved in starting the art institute where I studied printmaking. She was also a Christian Scientist, the Church was across from the current Art Institute, they knocked it down a few years ago(you can look up the pics online). It looks like she may have lived in Battle Creek later and is buried in Galesburg. I was wondering if someone had access to the newspaper archive site? The Sept. 22, 1916 Marshall News Statesman has an article with the text that is posted on the ASK ART site. I noticed they have her birth date wrong, she was born in 1869. Also any comments on the clothing, the term "flapper", medium (maybe Gouache?), other things about the artist.

 

Wait for others, but just had to say that is such a cool piece. What a frame, too!

I do think her dress is "Flapper" era. Love this!

 

@Lithographer....
HA!!! LOVE that picture!!! LOVE that frame!!! LOVE that hat!!!
IT just all goes together PERFECTLY!!!
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Definitely flapper-era what with cloche hat. Fab frame.

Debora

 

Wonder if not something she copied. Looks like a period illustration rather than a portrait.

Debora

 

As was a co-founder of this group, they might be knowledgable about her work.

https://kiarts.org/connect-visit/history/

Debora

 

I think I'm in love again! What a beauty! Thanks...

 

I was thinking gouache at first, a combination of gouache and transparent watercolor...or, it may be only transparent watercolor mixed with white. If you mix white watercolor with a transparent watercolor, you'll get a fairly opaque color. I can't say for sure without a close-up, but if you look at the colors in her hat, you can see the use of a wet-in-wet technique in some areas. You won't get that with gouache.

 

The medium is pastel, imo.

 

They are good about helping out with research, they have a great reference library. They always keep a cart out front where you can pick up the old books for cheap.

 

I bet that’s the painting that is mentioned on the info tag on the back of mine.

 

Hi, I do have access to NewspaperArchive and have found the article from 1916. You mentioned that it is posted at AskArt also. That one is basically accurate with a few typos. About 8 words are missing at the end on the AskArt version. There are not as many words that were left out as you might expect from AskArt's note. This was in the "Social Notes" column of the paper, and it contained other notices. I believe the number of characters that AskArt says are missing are characters from other notices that have nothing to do with this artist.

I can email you a PDF copy of the notice about the artist if you will send me your email address through a private message.