When At a fashionable funeral first appeared in print, readers of the early 20th century recognized themselves—or at least their aspirations—in its sharp social satire. Charles Dana Gibson was already famed for inventing the "Gibson Girl," an icon of modern femininity, but here he turned his pen to the rituals of high society, exposing their vanities with a wit that made his illustrations household conversation pieces. The work quickly circulated in popular magazines, sparking laughter and, perhaps, a touch of discomfort among those who saw their own social circles lampooned. The scene captures a moment of high drama among the well-heeled mourners: elegant ladies in extravagant hats and somber black, gentlemen in formal attire, all arrayed in a display of public grief that seems just a bit too rehearsed.

The faces are composed, eyes discreetly scanning the room, as if weighing each other's performances rather than the loss itself. Gibson's line is crisp and precise, every feathered plume and gloved hand rendered with care, but the real subject is the choreography of social obligation. Unlike the raw emotion of Jean-Louis Forain's depictions of funerals, which dwell on private sorrow, Gibson's satire highlights the spectacle, suggesting that in certain circles, even mourning is a matter of fashion. As with many of Gibson's works, the original drawing's whereabouts are uncertain—many of his illustrations were created for magazines such as Life and Collier's, then dispersed or lost.

Some survive only as prints or reproductions, cherished by collectors of American illustration and social commentary. At a fashionable funeral stands as a testament to Gibson's keen observation of his era's rituals, and marks a high point in his ongoing critique of the Gilded Age elite. Today, it is most often encountered in anthologies of his work, its humor and insight as sharp as when it first appeared.