Always conflicted about her status as a “woman of ease,” Juliette Gordon Low looked for a call to service and found it in scouting. From the beginning, membership included girls from different religious, ethnic, and social backgrounds, as well as girls with disabilities. (Low herself was severely hearing impaired for much of her life.) Today there are more than 2.5 million Girl Scouts in the U.S. and in nearly 90 other countries. More than 50 million women have participated in Juliette Gordon Low’s organization.
Juliette Gordon Low
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Object Details
- Date
- 1887
- Artist
- Edward Hughes, 1832 - 1908
- Sitter
- Juliette Gordon Low, 31 Oct 1860 - 17 Jan 1927
- Exhibition Label
- Born Savannah, Georgia
- Elegantly depicted by British artist Edward Hughes, Juliette Gordon Low radiates the luxury of elite American birth and marriage to a wealthy Englishman. Low’s satisfaction with her privileged lifestyle, however, soon faded. Following her unfaithful husband’s death, she became interested in the Girl Guides, an organization established by her friend, British general Sir Robert Baden-Powell, who had also founded the Boy Scouts. Working with disadvantaged girls living near her Scottish estate, Low became a troop leader, imparting practical skills to her charges. After creating troops in London, she brought the idea to the United States in 1912, establishing a Girl Guides troop in her hometown of Savannah, Georgia. In 1915, Low incorporated the Girl Scouts of the USA. Today, the organization continues to inspire girls to pursue “the highest ideals of character, conduct, patriotism, and service that they may become happy and resourceful citizens.”
- Nacida en Savannah, Georgia
- Representada con elegancia por el artista británico Edward Hughes, Juliette Gordon Low irradia el lujo de haber nacido en el seno de la élite estadouni- dense y haber contraído matrimonio con un inglés acaudalado. Sin embargo, su gusto por su privilegiado estilo de vida pronto se desvaneció. Después de morir su esposo infiel, Low se interesó en las Girl Guides, organización establecida por su amigo, el general británico Sir Robert Baden-Powell, quien también había fundado los Boy Scouts. Low empezó a trabajar con niñas desventajadas cerca de su propiedad en Escocia, enseñándoles destrezas prácticas, y pasó a convertirse en líder de tropa. Luego de crear tropas en Londres, trajo la idea a Estados Unidos en 1912 y estableció una tropa de Girl Guides en su ciudad natal de Savannah, Georgia. En 1915 incorporó la entidad Girl Scouts of the USA. Hasta el día de hoy, la organización continúa inspi- rando a las niñas a procurar “los más altos ideales de carácter, conducta, patriotismo y servicio para que sean ciudadanas felices y capacitadas”.
- Provenance
- The sitter; remained at Juliette Low home in Savannah, later owned by the Girl Scouts of America; gift 1973 to NPG
- Topic
- Exterior\Landscape\Rural
- Costume\Jewelry\Bracelet
- Costume\Dress Accessory\Fan
- Juliette Gordon Low: Female
- Juliette Gordon Low: Social Welfare and Reform\Civic organization founder
- Juliette Gordon Low: Civilian awards\Presidential Medal of Freedom
- Portrait
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Exhibition
- 20th Century Americans: 1900-1930 (re-installation 2012)
- On View
- NPG, South Gallery 322
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of the Girl Scouts of the United States of America; frame conserved with funds from the Smithsonian Women's Committee
- Data Source
- National Portrait Gallery
- Object number
- NPG.73.5
- Type
- Painting
- Restrictions & Rights
- CC0
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- Stretcher: 133.4 x 96.5 x 2.5cm (52 1/2 x 38 x 1")
- Frame: 167 x 130.8 x 10.2cm (65 3/4 x 51 1/2 x 4")
- Metadata Usage
- CC0
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.73.5