A Certain Zest: Artists' Portraits of Edna St. Vincent Millay

Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892-1950), Vassar class of 1917, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and playwright known for her innovation, passion, bohemian lifestyle, and feminist activism. Millay was one of the most skillful writers of sonnets in the twentieth century, combining Modernism with tradition to produce a unique form of American poetry that speaks to the rebellious spirit of her generation.

While Millay's tightly held self-image demanded a certain resistance to representation and appropriation, she was often photographed by well-known international artists with whom she felt an affinity, perhaps due to their own independent vision, modern lifestyle, and aesthetic restraint. On view were photographs of Millay shot by Berenice Abbott, Herman Mishkin, and William Zorach.

This exhibition was supported by the Hoene Hoy Photography Endowment Fund. A two-part concurrent exhibition titled "Edna St. Vincent Millay: Treasures from Steepletop" was on view at Vassar's Thompson Memorial Library and Art Library. Both exhibitions commemorated the 100th anniversary of Millay's graduation from Vassar, and her 125th birthday. Their organization was a collaboration with Millay's home at Steepletop in Austerlitz, New York, which is owned and maintained by the Edna St. Vincent Millay Society. Special thanks to Mark O'Berski, Millay Society Vice President and Holly Peppe, Literary Executor for Edna St. Vincent Millay. The exhibition title was taken from a sonnet, "Sonnet XLI," by Millay. There are works that appeared in this exhibition that were loans to the Loeb and therefore do not appear on this website.