Monday Inspiration: Caroline Farncomb

Caroline Farncomb, Mary Harris, 1906, (source)

Caroline Farncomb, Wild Duck, 1901, (source)

Caroline Farncomb (1859-1951), was a well exhibited London Ontario artist. That's pretty much the extent of info on her on line. No personal history seems to be out there- she studied art in London, New York and Paris, and then returned to Canada where she painted landscapes, portraits, and animals.

I love the feathers on this duck- so gracefully swept back, also it's little limp beak and feet, very evocative. I also really love the pose on the portrait of Mary Harris- I've spoken before about the potential awkwardness of painting portraits- people always want to be seen a certain way- and invariably say- "that doesn't look like me!" or "Do I look like that?!" in a horrified way if you actually capture their likeness honestly (though if you make them more attractive than they think they are- they're usually pretty quiet about it). I wonder what the reaction to this portrait was- where Mrs. Mary Harris looks so distracted, and not quite happily distracted either... it makes you wonder.


Monday Inspiration 2014 is all about Canadian artists. Each Monday I'll pick a new one to profile- If you can think of any that you think I ought to look up- please let me know in the comments- I'd love to hear from you. You can find a list of the artists I've done so far here.