Caricature of a Woman in a Large Hat

The famous tenor Caruso was a skilled amateur caricaturist who portrayed himself in operatic roles and drew humorous portraits of friends, as a release from his stressful professional life. Since 1903 Caruso had lived in New York for part of each year while performing at the Metropolitan Opera, and sent opera-related caricatures to La Follia, a local Italian-language newspaper. An inscription indicates that he created this sketch in Southampton in 1920, probably during a summer visit with his wife of two years, Dorothy Park Benjamin. Only a few rapidly applied lines were needed to define a well-dressed lady with bobbed hair, tired features and beaded necklace. The extended neck and overshadowing hat brim were slyly manipulated to make the subject resemble a mushroom.