One of the people behind the famous artists Picasso and Matisse was also an icon in her own right.
Gertrude Stein was influential, both as a writer and a cultural figure. A Jewish American writer living in France, she hosted one of the top salons in Paris, a French social gathering where guests discussed topics such as art, philosophy, and politics. It was through her salons where she brought together artists such Henri Matisse, Juan Gris, and Pablo Picasso.
“She was gutsy, she was brave, she was crazy smart,” said Robert Kesten, executive director of Stonewall National Museum in Fort Lauderdale.
Stein lived openly with her partner Alice B. Toklas, a bold act in the first half of the 20th century. The couple stayed together until Stein’s death in 1946. This was a time when same-sex relationships were both illegal and frowned upon. They met in Paris and, like other American expatriates such as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, were drawn to Europe for its more accepting culture.
“They both came from the West Coast of the United States and realized independently of each other that staying in the United States and being lesbians was not really an option,” Kesten said. “And so they left for Europe, where they had greater freedom and were able to develop the appreciation for a very fast changing world that they became the center of.”
Stein and Toklas ignored warnings from the American Embassy to flee France during World War II, instead being protected by their friend Bernard Faÿ who also protected their artwork. This has been considered controversial due to Faÿ serving as an official in Vichy France, a rump state that allied with Nazi Germany during the war.
Stein’s most famous work was a memoir of her life written in the voice of Toklas, “The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas.” Stein is also well known for the phrase “a rose is a rose is a rose.”
“It was very indicative of her style, which was unique and powerful,” Kesten said. “And resonates with a lot of people even today.”
Through her salons, Stein created an environment where some of the most creative minds of her time could thrive. Artists could gather, exchange ideas, and even share meals, making her a vital contributor to Western culture and its artistic evolution.
Among her contributions have been the inspiration that modern writers have taken from her life, such as playwright Arianna Rose writing the “Equivalent of Sensation.” The play features Stein’s relationships with Toklas and the Cone Sisters.
Claribel and Etta Cone were also active art collectors and socialites, sharing the same social circle filled with up-and-coming artists and writers as Stein and Toklas.
The play debuted last fall in Miami and was also performed in Boca Raton. Rose is now working on adapting it into a musical, “A Collectible Sensation.”
Rose was looking through art magazines when she came across an article about the Cone sisters, which started the process of her researching for the play on and off for a decade.
“Talk about serendipity! I picked that particular magazine, with that particular project,” Rose said.
She said, as an American Jewish bisexual woman, her interest was piqued.
“Besides being a playwright and musical theater writer, I'm also a visual artist. And my mom was an artist too. So her favorite was always Picasso, I love Matisse. So reading up on all these women and what they did for modern art, I never heard of them before.”
Rose found the women ahead of their time, with Claribel Cone and Stein both attending medical school. Claribel Cone graduated while Stein dropped out.
“They were drawn to this incredible modern art and we look at it now and just you know, to us it's no big deal. But back in the time when Matisse came out with the ‘Woman with the Hat,’ there were riots and people were scratching at the painting,” Rose said. “It was such a foreign art modality for people. So the fact that they were so forward-thinking and starting to collect this. They didn't collect it with an eye towards selling or even having a collection in a museum. They just did it because they loved it.”
Stein was played by Carla Zackson Heller in the local performances from last fall.
“The play took inspiration from historical gay pioneers for whom living as an out gay person, as Gertrude and Alice, was incredibly more challenging than now. They faced, you can imagine, much more opposition, and I’m incredibly surprised and kind of honored to be reflecting these characters,” Heller said. “They were American expats living in Paris. Alice met Gertrude in 1906 and they stayed together for [almost] 40 years. They were homeless in Paris, and they were friends with all kinds of teachers, writers, artists, and musicians. They were very popular, they were trendsetters, and they were able to do so living their lives out.”
Heller noted how they lived openly without explicitly declaring their sexuality.
“They may not have screamed the word ‘lesbian’ from the rooftops, although Gertrude did use that word. But people knew and people accepted them.”
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