Betty W. Hubbard, Nude

Hubbard's Nude demonstrates exquisite sensibility in composition, proportion, and color. Strong lines gracefully describe the contours of the body. An easy naturalism is expressed through warm, tonal hues of dark and light crimson. Small patches of orange and green activate the composition.

Hubbard was born in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood of Philadelphia. She studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) from 1921 to 1925, together with Quita Brodhead, and took part in Arthur B. Carles's Saturday morning costume sketch class. With Brodhead and others, Hubbard left PAFA in protest when Carles was dismissed, but she continued to study with him privately. Throughout her life Hubbard remained Carles's strong supporter and he, in turn, advocated for her talent as well. Carles always kept a painting by Hubbard hanging in his studio and he admired her sense of color.