Name/Title
Louis and Mary Bromfield Portrait, Lillian ColtonDescription
Unfortunately, no information has been found about Lillian Colton, the artist who painted this portrait of Louis and Mary Bromfield in France in 1930. There was a Lillian Colton (1911-2007) from Minnesota who made a name for herself as a "crop artist" (portraits produced with seeds). Unfortunately, this individual was not the same Lillian Colton.
By 1930, Louis Bromfield had written several best-selling novels, had won the 1927 Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and Hollywood was producing the two movies based on his short stories. There was a lot of money coming in, and Mrs. Bromfield decided that wealthy people didn't just have photographs of themselves. They had their portraits painted. Louis said he had more important things to do with his time than posing for a portrait and wasn't cooperating.
Mrs. Bromfield finally arranged for artist Lillian Colton to come to the coast of France where the Bromfields were vacationing. Here she could paint the portrait during a time of rest and relaxation. Unfortunately, Louis still balked, refusing to come up from the beach, so Mrs. Bromfield took the artist to him. Hence, Louis' casual waterfront attire contrasts with Mary's much more elegant dress. Note the grim look on Louis' face.
- Adapted from research and text by Thomas Bachelder of the Malabar Farm FoundationLocation
Building
The Big HouseOhio State Park
Malabar Farm State Park