Alice Beckington (July 30, 1868 – January 4, 1942) was an American painter. Born in St. Charles,

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

, Beckington studied art at the Art Students League of New York, where she was a pupil of J. Carroll Beckwith; she also studied for a month with

Kenyon Cox Kenyon Cox (October 27, 1856 – March 17, 1919) was an American painter, illustrator, muralist, writer, and teacher. Cox was an influential and important early instructor at the Art Students League of New York. He was the designer of the League ...

. She next traveled to Paris for study at the Académie Julian, where her instructors included

Jules Joseph Lefebvre Jules Joseph Lefebvre (; 14 March 183624 February 1911) was a French figure painter, educator and theorist. Early life Lefebvre was born in Tournan-en-Brie, Seine-et-Marne, on 14 March 1836. He entered the École nationale supérieure des Bea ...

and

Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant (also known as Benjamin-Constant), born Jean-Joseph Constant (10 June 1845 – 26 May 1902), was a French painter and etcher best known for his Oriental subjects and portraits. Biography Benjamin-Constant was bor ...

, and taking lessons with Charles Lasar at his studio. She had exhibitions at Paris Salons and Paris Expositions through 1900, including the Salon du Champ de Mars. Upon returning to the United States, Beckington began exhibiting work in venues including the

Pan-American Exposition The Pan-American Exposition was a World's Fair held in Buffalo, New York, United States, from May 1 through November 2, 1901. The fair occupied of land on the western edge of what is now Delaware Park, extending from Delaware Avenue to Elmwood A ...

, where she received an honorable mention, Louisiana Purchase Exposition, where she received a bronze medal, and Poland Spring Exhibition. She was a founder member of the American Society of Miniature Painters, of which organization she served as president for a number of years, and from 1905 to 1916 she taught miniature painting at the Art Students League. She was also a member, during her career, of the

American Federation of Arts The American Federation of Arts (AFA) is a nonprofit organization that creates art exhibitions for presentation in museums around the world, publishes exhibition catalogues, and develops education programs. The organization’s founding in 1909 w ...

and the

Pennsylvania Society of Miniature Painters The Pennsylvania Society of Miniature Painters was founded in 1901 by Emily Drayton Taylor to promote the work of miniature portrait A portrait miniature is a miniature portrait painting, usually executed in gouache, Watercolor painting, waterc ...

. Beckington was among the women artists, including Theodora W. Thayer, Thomas Meteyard, sisters Matilda Lewis and Josephine Lewis, and Mabel Stewart who began summering at Scituate,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

around the turn of the century, founding a small artistic colony. During this time she also spent time with notable feminist author

Inez Haynes Irwin Inez Haynes Irwin (March 2, 1873 – September 25, 1970) was an American feminist author, journalist, member of the National Women's Party, and president of the Authors Guild. Many of her works were published under her former name Inez Haynes ...

, and she and Thayer both painted portraits of Irwin that were exhibited in the

Knoedler M. Knoedler & Co. was an art dealership in New York City founded in 1846. When it closed in 2011, amid lawsuits for fraud, it was one of the oldest commercial art galleries in the US, having been in operation for 165 years. History Knoedler dat ...

Gallery. In 1935, she was awarded the medal of honor by the Brooklyn Society of Miniature Painters. A portrait by Beckington of her pupil Rosina Cox Boardman is currently in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Three portraits, including one of her mother, are owned by the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

Gallery

File:Miss T. MET ap43.63.jpg, Portrait of Miss T., 1898 File:Richard Vaughn Lewis MET DP219126.jpg, Portrait of Richard Vaughn Lewis. c. 1910 File:Mrs. Beckington MET DP162099.jpg, Portrait of Mrs. Beckington (the artist's mother), 1913

References

1868 births 1942 deaths American women painters American portrait painters Portrait miniaturists 19th-century American painters 19th-century American women artists 20th-century American painters 20th-century American women artists People from St. Charles, Missouri Painters from Missouri Art Students League of New York alumni Académie Julian alumni Art Students League of New York faculty American women academics {{US-painter-1860s-stub