Have you ever "met" an artist and been relatively heartbroken? Not with him or her, and certainly not with his or her work, but crushed to discover you've wasted years (years!) not knowing this artist? So it is with me and the superlative American portrait painter Cecilia Beaux (1855-1942).

Beaux had lurked on the periphery of my radar for years, but it wasn't until I caught up with her just now, as the special exhibition Cecilia Beaux: American Figure Painter made its way to her beloved alma mater and employer, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia (February 2-April 13, 2008), that Cecilia and I found the time to get up close and personal. Three weeks, six books and a protracted romp through her papers (the entire collection is online) later, and I have come to adore her. For my part, I think she may, possibly, have tolerated me.

Please take a look at some of her work in the exhibition gallery Cecilia Beaux: American Figure Painter, and get to know this remarkable woman yourself.

Image credit:

Cecilia Beaux (American, 1855-1942)
Self-Portrait No. 3, 1894
Oil on canvas
25 x 20 inches (63.5 x 50.8 cm)
© National Academy Museum, New York