As Britannica reports, it was essentially through modeling for artists that Monroe found herself in an acting career. Posing for photographers put her on the map, and led to her 1948 role in “Scudda-Hoo! Scudda-Hey!” This movie proved to be one of her first high-profile steps toward a movie career. Many of her fans, however, don’t know that she was something of an artist herself.
Artsy reports that Monroe began an art course in 1951. Renaissance art was one focus of this University of California course. Later that decade, she had joined Connecticut’s Famous Artists School, seeking to further her artistic education again. Clearly, though she often portrayed rather vacuous characters in her movies, she was a deep, vulnerable, intellectual and thoughtful woman. These traits have come to define many artists, such as the tragically troubled Vincent Van Gogh. Monroe herself certainly acted on her inclinations and interests to create some art of her own.
AnOther reports that, in 2016, Los Angeles’ Julien’s Auctions arranged an auction of some very special Marilyn Monroe memorabilia. It was a real mixed bag of her personal effects, including everything from a used lipstick to financial documents, but perhaps the most interesting items were some drawings Monroe had created.
