July Afternoon 1897

Rose O'Neill, born in 1874, painted “July Afternoon” with oil on canvas. O’Neill was the sole woman of her time to make a living as a cartoonist, creating the wildly popular Kewpie characters, and later in life, she turned to painting. Here, nature is seen through the lens of her interiority, in the tradition of women artists whose lives were circumscribed by societal expectations around domesticity. The painting, thick with a bright palette, shimmers with heat, conveying both a palpable sense of longing, and a vision of nature as abundant, fertile, and decidedly feminine. The lack of human figures emphasizes the personal and introspective dimensions of the work. O’Neill’s work in mass media provided her with financial independence and creative freedom at a time when opportunities for women were scarce. "July Afternoon" feels like a moment of respite, an opportunity to see the world through the eyes of an artist who knew what it meant to subvert expectations and forge her own path.