Twinka Thiebaud (born December 9, 1945) is an American model who has posed for many of the most important photographers of the 20th century. A photograph by

Judy Dater Judith Rose Dater (née Lichtenfeld; June 21, 1941) is an American photographer and feminist. She is celebrated for her 1974 photograph, '' Imogen and Twinka at Yosemite'', featuring an elderly Imogen Cunningham, one of America's first woman phot ...

depicting Thiebaud, '' Imogen and Twinka at Yosemite'', is considered among the most iconic photos in art history, and was the first adult full-frontal nude photograph published in ''Life'' magazine. Another photo of Thiebaud by Dater is included in ''The Woman's Eye'' (1973),The Woman's Eye, Alfred A. Knopf, 1973, a book devoted to women photographers, and also served as the cover image.

Life and career

Early life

Twinka is the daughter of the American painter,

Wayne Thiebaud Wayne Thiebaud ( ; born Morton Wayne Thiebaud; November 15, 1920 – December 25, 2021) was an American painter known for his colorful works depicting commonplace objects—pies, cakes, lipsticks, paint cans, ice cream cones, pastries, and hot d ...

and his wife Patricia (née Patterson), wed in 1943. Twinka was Wayne Thiebaud's first-born child. Born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

on December 9, 1945, Twinka was raised in Los Angeles,

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, and

Sacramento, California Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...

, where her father taught at the

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Davis, California, United States. It is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University ...

. Upon her parents' divorce in 1958, she moved with her mother and sisters to

Marin County, California Marin County ( ) is a County (United States), county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat a ...

, where she attended Redwood High School. Her younger brother was the

art dealer An art dealer is a person or company that buys and sells works of art, or acts as the intermediary between the buyers and sellers of art. An art dealer in contemporary art typically seeks out various artists to represent, and builds relationsh ...

and gallerist Paul Thiebaud.

Modeling career

Seeking to become an actress, Twinka returned to Los Angeles from Marin. For a number of years, she lived with the aging novelist

Henry Miller Henry Valentine Miller (December 26, 1891 – June 7, 1980) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist. He broke with existing literary forms and developed a new type of semi-autobiographical novel that blended character study, so ...

in his Pacific Palisades home, acting as his cook and caretaker; a family friend of Miller, she was with him on the day he died. Simultaneously, she worked as an artist's model, becoming a favorite of

Robert Heinecken Robert Heinecken (1931 – May 19, 2006) was an American artist who referred to himself as a "paraphotographer" because he so often made photographic images without a camera. Early life and education Born in Denver in 1931, Heinecken grew up in Ri ...

, Judy Dater,

Mary Ellen Mark Mary Ellen Mark (March 20, 1940 – May 25, 2015) was an American photographer known for her photojournalism, documentary photography, portraiture, and advertising photography. She photographed people who were "away from mainstream society and t ...

Arnold Newman Arnold Abner Newman (March 3, 1918 – June 6, 2006) was an American photographer, noted for his "environmental portraits" of artists and politicians. He was also known for his carefully composed abstract still life images. In 2006, he was induc ...

Lucien Clergue Lucien Clergue (; 14 August 1934 – 15 November 2014) was a French photographer. He was Chairman of the Academy of Fine Arts, Paris for 2013. Biography Lucien Clergue was born in Arles, France. At the age of 7 he began learning to play the ...

Eikoh Hosoe was a Japanese photographer and filmmaker who emerged in the experimental arts movement of post-World War II Japan. Hosoe is best known for his dark, high contrast, black and white photographs of human bodies. His images are often psychologicall ...

Ralph Gibson Ralph Gibson (born January 16, 1939) is an American art photographer best known for his photographic books. His images often incorporate fragments with erotic and mysterious undertones, building narrative meaning through contextualization and ...

, and

Arthur Tress Arthur Tress (born November 24, 1940) is an American photographer. He is known for his staged surrealism and exposition of the human body. Early life and education Tress comes from a Jewish background; his parents immigrated from Europe. He was ...

. Many of the images taken of Twinka at this time are in international private collections and have been shown in galleries and museums around the world, for example, the

Uffizi The Uffizi Gallery ( ; , ) is a prominent art museum adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria in the Historic Centre of Florence in the region of Tuscany, Italy. One of the most important Italian museums and the most visited, it is also one of th ...

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, and in New York's

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

. She also posed for her father throughout her life. One canvas, painted when she was 18, called ''Supine Woman'', sold at

Sotheby's Sotheby's ( ) is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine art, fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...

on November 12, 2009, for $1,818,500 and is owned by the

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is a museum of American art in Bentonville, Arkansas. The museum, founded by Alice Walton and designed by Moshe Safdie, officially opened on 11 November 2011. It offers free public admission. Overview ...

in Bentonville,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

. At home with Miller, Twinka discovered that he was a great talker, regaling his almost nightly guests with tales of his past and his work. Listening, she began to keep a notebook of her version of what he said each evening. Showing Henry her notes, he expressed enthusiasm, introducing her to his own publisher, Noel Young at

Capra Press Capra Press is an independent publishing house that was founded in Santa Barbara, California, in 1969. The press relocated to San Francisco, California, in 2011. History Noel Young (1922–2002), a former commercial printer, founded the press i ...

. The resulting book, ''Reflections'', was published in 1981. Later living in

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

, she published an extensive rewrite of ''Reflections'' called ''What Doncha Know? About Henry Miller'', in February 2011. A photograph by Judy Dater depicting Thiebaud, '' Imogen and Twinka at Yosemite'', has become one of the most recognizable images caught by an American photographer. The photo was the first adult full-frontal nude photograph published in ''Life'' magazine. The issue of ''Life'' came out in 1976 as a Bicentennial ''Special Issue'' and was devoted to and called "Remarkable American Women 1776–1976". "Because of her work in the 1970s... and in particular because of that one photograph of Imogen and Twinka... Dater has secured herself a place in photographic history." Another photo of Twinka by Dater is included in

Anne Wilkes Tucker Anne Wilkes Tucker (born 1945) is a former American curator of photographic works. She retired in June 2015. Life and work Tucker was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She received a B.A. in Art History from Randolph College, Randolph Macon Woman' ...

's compilation, ''The Woman's Eye'' (1973), a book devoted to women photographers, and also served as the cover image. Reviewing it, Anemone Hartocollis of ''

The Harvard Crimson ''The Harvard Crimson'' is the student newspaper at Harvard University, an Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. The newspaper was founded in 1873, and is run entirely by Harvard College undergraduate students. His ...

'' wrote: "These aren't demurring women about to extend or accept an invitation, they confront you with their sexuality. Some are beautiful, yet that's not what attracts attention. These women are provocative because their individuality and intellectuality aren't stifled by unctuous idealization. The photographs are precisely detailed, untouched, and of theatrical intensity. One, called 'Twinka,' is confusing. A frail, attractive girl wearing a diaphanous dress crouches at the base of a gnarled redwood, one arm spanning her breast to clutch a low branch. But her uncanny expression could never be elicited or tolerated by a male photographer: her eyes bore straight out, wide and threatening."

Later years

Thiebaud has resided in Portland, Oregon, since 1993, working as a painter, as well as for the on-campus food service company at

Reed College Reed College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus in the Eastmoreland, Portland, Oregon, E ...

. Commenting in 2008 on her relocation to Portland, Thiebaud said, "I wanted to be in a city where there were readers. Portland has a wonderful neighborhood feel; all these little villages strung together like a beautiful necklace." An exhibit title
"Twinka Thiebaud and the Art of the Pose"
opened June 19, 2022 at The Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, California. The exhibit features a curated collection, captured throughout her more than 50 years as an artist's model. The exhibit featured paintings, drawings, and photographs from the 1940s through 2022, and investigated Thiebaud’s earliest modeling work, completed as a child for her father, artist Wayne Thiebaud. The Crocker also featured a concurrent exhibit celebrating 100 years of Wayne Thiebaud's works titled
"Wayne Thiebaud: A Celebration, 1920-2021"

Literature

* Yahr, & Crocker Art Museum, host institution. (2022).
Twinka Thiebaud and the art of the pose
'. Hirmer Publishers. * Yahr, Jayme (Ed.): ''Twinka Thiebaud and the Art of the Pose'', Hirmer Publishers, Munich, 2022,

References

Sources

* ''The Woman's Eye'' (Alfred A. Knopf, 1973 ) * ''Portraits, the Library of World Photography'' (Thames and Hudson, London 1983) * ''Delicious: The Art and Life of Wayne Thiebaud'' by Susan Goldman Rubin (Chronicle Press, 2007) * ''The Devil at Large: Erica Jong on Henry Miller'' by

Erica Jong Erica Jong (née Mann; born March 26, 1942) is an American novelist, satirist, and poet known particularly for her 1973 novel ''Fear of Flying''. The book became famously controversial for its attitudes towards female sexuality and figured pro ...

(Grove Press, 1994) * ''Encyclopedia of 20th Century Photography'' by Lynne Warren
Henry Miller on Twinka's book ''Reflections'

How Dater took her most famous photo

Oral history interview with Wayne Thiebaud, 2001 May 17–18
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

ttps://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/109C5C Twinka Thiebaud, actress, model. 1970 Judy Dater, American, born 1941 Thiebaud T. (2011). ''What doncha know? about henry miller''. Eio Books.

External links

''Twinka Thiebaud''
by

(1970), at

Crocker Art Museum The Crocker Art Museum is the oldest art museum in the Western United States, located in Sacramento, California. Founded in 1885, the museum holds one of the premier collections of Californian art. The collection includes American works dating f ...

''Imogen and Twinka, Yosemite''
by

(1974), at

Smith College Museum of Art The Smith College Museum of Art, abbreviated SCMA, is the art museum of Smith College, located in Northampton, Massachusetts, Northampton, Massachusetts. First established in 1870, the museum is part of the American Alliance of Museums, Five Coll ...

''Reflections''
on goodreads.com * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thiebaud, Twinka American female models People from Marin County, California People from Sacramento, California Female models from Los Angeles People from Portland, Oregon 1945 births Living people Female models from Oregon 21st-century American women Redwood High School (Larkspur, California) alumni