Trysting at Evening

Josephine Joy, ca. 1935-1939

Download2395 × 3000 px View on a wall Edit

Artist: Josephine Joy (American, 1869–1948)
Medium: Oil on fiberboard
Size: 29 3/4 x 24 in. (75.7 x 61.0 cm.)
Museum: Smithsonian Institution
Rights: CC0 — no rights reserved

This painting may have been inspired by a sketch Josephine Joy made on one of her trips to the San Diego Zoo. The bench and railing in the image imply that this scene is a part of some man-made environment. The two peacocks in the foreground spread their trains to the fullest, displaying the bright colors of their plumage, and lift their chins in an attempt to attract a mate. The three birds perched on the railing and in the tree, however, ignore this elaborate show. In nature, the male peacocks are more brightly colored than female peahens, but here the artist shows them all to be more similarly colored.