Rebekah Wayne in True Grit 2015

Curator: This striking portrait by Felice House is titled "Rebekah Wayne in True Grit" and dates from 2015. It's rendered in oil paint, depicting a contemporary figure in a distinctly Western setting. What are your first impressions? Editor: The first thing that strikes me is the theatrical quality. The light seems almost staged, and there's a clear effort to portray her as both strong and vulnerable. The patch over her eye, in particular, suggests both toughness and a kind of wounding. Curator: I’m intrigued by how House uses the medium. Notice the texture in the rendering of the clouds and the layering of paint to create depth, especially around the figure's face and clothing. It shows an active engagement with the materiality of oil paint. How do you see the imagery functioning? Editor: The eye patch definitely calls to mind ideas of injury, wisdom, or selective vision. It creates an immediate visual link to the trope of the grizzled Western hero. Even the yellow scarf evokes notions of sun-bleached landscapes and endurance. She has taken those historical symbols and made them fresh for a new audience. Curator: I agree, it builds on those traditional tropes, while also examining ideas of authenticity in representation. This is especially poignant in Felice House’s wider work, where she focuses on placing women in traditionally masculine roles, often cowboys and other typically masculine characters. What do you make of that? Editor: It’s fascinating because the symbolism subverts expectations. We see a woman, not as a damsel, but claiming the historical territory that belongs to men in these classic Western settings. It disrupts that classic narrative. The effect gives rise to interesting tensions about gender, strength, and who gets to participate in shaping our shared myths. Curator: And that's exactly what's so captivating about the work—it invites us to question our assumptions about historical imagery. Thanks for offering your insights into that! Editor: My pleasure. It has given me much to consider in terms of who we see represented in historical artworks, and why.