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Helena Rubinstein, 1870-1965
Helena Rubinstein was a pioneer at a time when it was difficult for women to succeed in the male-dominated business world. She first made her reputation through the specialized treatments she offered to women at her exclusive salons, but she amassed her fortune in the 1920s selling mass-produced cosmetics internationally. Her legendary career paved the way for other entrepreneurial women. Mexican artist Roberto Montenegro here captures her dynamic personality and dramatic flair. Rubinstein is depicted wearing a specially designed necklace made by William Spratling, who created a center for Mexican jewelry in Taxco during the 1930s. Rubinstein wrote in her autobiography, "Although I no longer need the added courage that handsome jewelry once gave me (it was not easy being a hard-working woman in a man's world many years ago), I am aware that the wearing of exotic jewelry has become . . . a mark of my identity."
Roberto Montenegro, 1941 |