Jessica (painting)

It is considered one of Bunker's finest figure paintings, and has been described by art historian Theodore Stebbins as "among the most evocative" works of its time.

[1] In October 1889 Bunker took a studio and living quarters at 3 North Washington Square in New York City, alongside friends and fellow artists Abbott Handerson Thayer, Thomas Dewing, and Charles A.

[2] Newly married and seeking to establish a reputation as a portrait artist in order to support himself and his bride, Bunker painted Jessica in the spring of 1890 using a hired professional model.

She is painted bust length, life size and in profile, her fair skin and red hair set against a dark background.

At the same time the edges and accents throughout the canvas are given exactly the relative degree of definition perceptible to eyes focused so as to take in the entire area depicted.