Susan Macdowell Eakins Susan Macdowell Eakins Susan Hannah Macdowell Eakins (September 21, 1851 – December 27, 1938) was an American painter and photographer. Her works were first shown at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, where she was a student. She won the Mary Smith Prize there in 1879 and Charles Toppan prize in 1882. One of her teachers was artist Thomas Eakins, who later became her husband. She made portrait and still life paintings. She was also known of her photography. After her husband died in 1916, Eakins became a prolific painter. Her works were exhibited in group exhibitions in her lifetime,
Conservation-restoration of Thomas Eakins' The Gross Clinic the behest of Jefferson Medical College. Hearing of the college's plans for restoring the painting, Eakins' student Charles Bregler,who frequently treated multiple Eakins paintings at Susan Eakins request, attempted to intervene but was rebuffed. Horner removed the linen lining attached by Stevenson in 1915 and replaced it with two, 4 by 6 1/2 foot pieces of plywood which were butted in the center and nailed to a wooden framework. The painting was then attached using carpenter's glue. Records also indicate that Horner also cleaned and restored the painting. The results of the 1940 treatment proved to be disastrous and put