John had experience of being a model, as she had modelled for Rodin, with whom she became romantically involved while she was living in Paris. This is one of two paintings by Gwen John of Fenella Lovell, one nude and the other clothed.

We know from John's letters that there was friction between artist and model during the sittings - John confessed, 'it is a great strain doing Fenella. It is a pretty, little face but she is dreadful'. The result is a subtle but uncompromising painting, with an objectivity that suggests tension. John has depicted every detail of her subject's body. But while Fenella's gaze confronts the artist, she appears to resist emotional engagement.