The locals thought it strange, and she felt a sense of longing for where she had been and of not belonging where she was. She would roller-skate along the unpaved country roads and wear glamorous clothes from her previous life in the big city. So Audrey left the city and moved upstate with her mother, but she could never quite get used to small-town life. And the architectural landscape was shifting as well Modernism was on the rise and the costs associated with the ornamentation and intricacies of the Beaux-Arts style were becoming a concern. At thirty, Audrey was getting old for a model in that day. There were other headwinds blocking her at this point, too. From loving and admiring me, the public seems to have grown to hate me.” Despite having no direct involvement in the scandal, Audrey could not find work. On the fiasco, she wrote: “The Wilkins case ruined my career. A delusional neighbor in New York killed his wife so he could be with Audrey. Her career might have survived a failure in the film industry, but she also became embroiled in a murder scandal. The modeling bit was really the only part she could play, for her skill at evoking a mood and conveying expression seemed to end the moment she broke pose. She was even given an acting double in some cases–who did everything except the non-moving parts. Once out west, she wound up in Hollywood, where she was always cast in the role of a model. There was even a map highlighting all of her locations on the site. In fact, at a 1915 world’s fair in San Francisco, the World Panama–Pacific International Exposition, three-quarters of the statues on the grounds were modeled after her. Grand Central Terminal in New York, NY by Eric BaetscherĪs the Beaux-Arts style grew in popularity and started spreading west, Audrey followed, both in flesh and in sculpture. Her likeness now adorned capitol buildings and halls and monuments on both coasts. She made about $35 per week (about 800 in today’s dollars). It helped that the architecture that was in vogue at the time was the Beaux-Arts style, which required a lot of sculptures and detailed ornamentation. She thought of herself as a collaborator. She worked closely with the artists, learning their temperaments, familiarizing herself with their work. In 1913, The New York Sun dubbed her “Miss Manhattan.” She was known for being able to evoke a mood with her posture and expression and could hold poses for as long as needed. For decades, the resulting sculptural set (three muses, all patterned after Audrey) was in the lobby of the Hotel Astor. Audrey called this statue “a souvenir of my mother’s consent.”Īudrey began to work for many other famous artists in New York, and her reputation grew. But for this endeavor she would have to pose “in the altogether” (without clothes). He, too, was interested in hiring Munson for his work. Star Maiden by Alexander Stirling Calder, image by Eugen Neuhaus (public domain)Īfter some success, the photographer introduced Munson to his friend and famous sculptor Isidore Konti. These photoshoots were fully-clothed affairs. A photographer approached her one day and gave Audrey his card, asking if she would pose for some portraits. Her mother, recently divorced, moved with her to the Big City for a fresh start. Like so many supermodels that would come after her, Audrey Marie Munson was scouted on the streets of New York City in 1906. In the early 20th century, however, she was famous. Audrey Munson with photographer Arnold Genthe’s cat, Buzzer, in 1915 (public domain)Īudrey Munson was once the most famous artist’s model in the United States. Over 30 statues at the Metropolitan Museum of Art were made in her likeness, and she adorns dozens of memorials and bridges and buildings all over the city. Although the body and face of Audrey Munson have been immortalized in iron and marble, her name is mostly forgotten. But the truth is, all these likenesses were based on a single person: a model by the name of Audrey Munson. She has gone by many names: Star Maiden, Priestess of Culture, Mourning Victory, and, simply: Niche Figure. All over New York City, there is a woman in various states of undress, so baked into architecture that we barely even notice her. In the public library, she leans against a white horse at the intersection of 59th and 5th, she perches atop a fountain on 107th and Broadway, she reclines on a bed and on top of the Manhattan Municipal Building she stands tall, this time cast in gold.
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