Matt Foss, director
It’s not a stretch to say that portraits of women (especially by women artists) are having a moment in the global art market. During Sotheby’s recent November marquee auctions in New York, The Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer by Viennese Secessionist Gustav Klimt became the second most expensive artwork ever sold at auction. At the same time, a self-portrait, The Dream (The Bed) by Mexican Surrealist Frida Kahlo, set a record for a top sale price for a work by a female artist. Another splendid portrait, A Clear Unspoken Granted Magic by contemporary American artist Amy Sherald, was one of the highlights of the marquee evening auctions of the rival auction house Christie’s during the same week.
The Dream (The Bed) by Frida Kahlo. Photo by Matt Foss.
Fortunately, the Museum’s assistant director and collections curator Amalia Wojciechowski and I were able to preview all three when we were in New York to acquire artwork for the Museum’s permanent collection. Knowing these treasures (and many others) were almost guaranteed to end up in private hands, and not in other museums, made viewing them special and a little sad at the same time.
A Clear Unspoken Granted Magic by Amy Sherald. Photo by Matt Foss.
The Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer by Gustav Klimt. Photo by Matt Foss.
Although portraits fall outside of our usual collection focus on art of the natural world, the Museum does have three portraits of our own that command attention.
Anybody who spends time at the Museum inevitably passes by the portraits of Leigh Yawkey Woodson, Alice Woodson Forester, and Nancy Woodson Spire, representing our namesake and two members of the Museum’s founding family. In summer 2024, when the Museum hosted the exhibition Women Reframe American Landscape, we relocated the portraits from the main entrance to the 2012 addition to install a large-scale sculpture from the exhibition.
Portraits of the Woodson women at the Museum.
Since re-hanging the portraits, we’ve noticed more visitors engaging with the artworks and learning more about the Museum’s founding families and history in the process. As the Museum’s origin story is a fascinating one filled with generosity, foresight, and serendipity, the more people enjoying them, the better.
Just like those on view in November in New York, our portraits remain important works for the Museum to tell our story, and honor the tremendous gift the Woodson family gave to the Wausau community and visitors from around the world.
