Guy Pene du Bois (1884-1958), American
Gouache on paper (10 1/4" x 14 1/2")
Seated Black Woman
Price on Request

Guy Pene du Bois (1884-1958)

Pene DuBois was born in Brooklyn, New York, in a New Orleans French family.  His father, Henri Pene du Bois, was a noted critic, and his son grew up in a highly cultured atmosphere in literary circles.

Dropping out of high school, in 1899, he became the youngest student in William Merritt Chase's school, later known as The New York School of Art*.  In addition to Chase, his teachers there were Frank DuMond, Kenneth Miller, and Robert Henri, whose teachings on Social Realism* and following one's own artistic inclinations had great influence.

In 1905, he went to Paris and attended briefly the Academie Colarossi, and did numerous paintings of cafe society.  In 1906, because of the death of his father, he returned to the United States, and worked as a newspaper music and art critic for a number of prestigious publications.

Many of his paintings are satirical to the point that the figures are caricatures.  He also did numerous murals.

Source: Matthew Baigell, Dictionary of American Art