Exhibitions

Leading the Field: Ellen Emmet Rand

Oct 4, 2019 - Jun 30, 2020

In 1936, on the heels of painting an official presidential portrait of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Ellen Emmet Rand held a solo exhibition. Though she had been a professional portrait artist for over three decades, this show was a departure from the paintings of captains of industry, socialites, artists, and children for which she had become known. The exhibition, Sporting Portraits  by Ellen Emmet Rand, N.A., was held at The Sporting Gallery & Bookshop in New York City, and subjects included well-known sporting figures such as Fletcher Harper, Master of the Orange County Hunt (now Orange County Hounds); Dr. Howard Collins, Master of Millbrook Hunt; and Charlotte Noland, founder of the prestigious Foxcroft School and Joint-Master of Middleburg Hunt.


The exhibition Leading the Field: Ellen Emmet Rand and accompanying catalog gather together many of the same paintings from Rand’s 1936 show, as well as others, to bring to life the stories, personalities, and relationships behind these works. Rand lived a remarkable life as one of the first successful, professional female artists in the United States. She was a lifelong equestrian, active in American foxhunting circles, and proved to be significant within the context of sporting history and culture during the first half of the 20th century.

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Fletcher Harper, Esq (1874-1963), MFH The Orange Country, 1931
oil on canvas, 43 ½ x 34 inches
Masters of Foxhounds Association Foundation

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Fletcher Harper, Esq (1874-1963), MFH The Orange Country, 1931
oil on canvas, 43 ½ x 34 inches
Masters of Foxhounds Association Foundation

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Miss Emily Davie, ex-Whipper-in to the Aiken Junior Drag, 1932
oil on canvas, frame size 50 x 37 inches
Collection of Geoffrey N. Bradfield

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Miss Emily Davie, ex-Whipper-in to the Aiken Junior Drag, 1932
oil on canvas, frame size 50 x 37 inches
Collection of Geoffrey N. Bradfield

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Charles Merrill Chapin, Esq, 1932
oil on canvas, 46 x 38 inches
Collection of Mr. & Mrs. Charles Chapin, III

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Charles Merrill Chapin, Esq, 1932
oil on canvas, 46 x 38 inches
Collection of Mr. & Mrs. Charles Chapin, III

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Miss Charlotte Noland, Joint M.F.H., The Middleburg Hunt, 1929
oil on canvas, 40 x 30 inches
Foxcroft School, Middleburg, VA

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Miss Charlotte Noland, Joint M.F.H., The Middleburg Hunt, 1929
oil on canvas, 40 x 30 inches
Foxcroft School, Middleburg, VA

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Study for Portrait of Fletcher Harper (1874-1963), 1931
oil on canvas 45 x 34 ½ inches
National Sporting Library & Museum, Gift of Mrs. Fletcher Harper, 1972

Ellen Emmet Rand (American, 1875-1941)
Study for Portrait of Fletcher Harper (1874-1963), 1931
oil on canvas 45 x 34 ½ inches
National Sporting Library & Museum, Gift of Mrs. Fletcher Harper, 1972