Beth Van Hoesen and fellow artist Wayne Thiebaud were close friends. The two often shared studio space, and the expense of hiring a model, in the converted firehouse where Van Hoesen lived with her husband, the artist Mark Adams. Both artists excelled at still life drawing and printmaking and one can see where their interests overlapped in Van Hoesen’s Candy (1967) and Thiebaud’s Slice of Pie (1962).

Both artists also shared a belief that drawing from a live model was absolutely essential to the artist’s process. Van Hoesen would often find prospective models on the streets near her San Francisco home. She immortalized two of these models, Traci and Steve (1990) in her masterful and colorful etching and aquatints, both masterpieces of contemporary portraiture and printmaking.

Beth Van Hoesen and Wayne Thiebaud: Friendship and Community is organized for the McNay Art Museum by Lyle W. Williams, Curator of Prints and Drawings, Curator of Modern Art.