The subject is Edna Smith, a professional model who posed for other paintings, at least two of them nudes. Since they did not require him to capture the personality of the model as he did in his portraits, figure studies were for Henri an opportunity to explore formal issues that interested him, especially the Maratta system of color and the compositional ideas that interested him and his circle. The color in this work is exceptionally vivid, the model’s red hair and fair coloring set off by a complementary blue-green background. The brushwork is vigorous and joyous, clearly showing his dashing execution. Henri’s already powerful technique had steadily increased in facility into the middle of the second decade of the century. In a painting such as this, where it is given completely free play, one can see what a dexterous and masterly craftsman Henri had become. Henri taught his students to "work quickly. Don’t stop for anything but the essential .... It’s the spirit of the thing that counts" (Henri diary, August 25, 1926, entry).
Dr. Dorothea Moore, who donated Edna to the museum, was an early Los Angeles enthusiast of the painter. At one time she also owned Henri’s The Dancer Resting (unlocated), which she lent to the museum for a 1921 exhibition.
