Mary and Mammy

Sarah Eakin Cowan, Mary and Mammy, ca. 1925, watercolor on ivory, sight 5 x 3 ³⁄₄ in. (12.7 x 9.4 cm) rectangle, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the American Society of Miniature Painters, 1965.30.4

Artwork Details

Title: Mary and Mammy
Artist: Sarah Eakin Cowan
Date: ca. 1925
Location: Not on view
Dimensions: sight 5 x 3 ³⁄₄ in. (12.7 x 9.4 cm) rectangle
Credit Line: Gift of the American Society of Miniature Painters
Mediums: watercolor
Mediums Description: watercolor on ivory
Classifications: Painting
Miniature
Subjects: Portrait female — unidentified — Mary
Occupation — domestic — nursemaid
African American
Object Number: 1965.30.4
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1965.30.4

Artwork Description

This miniature shows an African American woman posing with her employer’s child. The title of the portrait evokes a time when black domestic workers were expected to be devoted to the care of white children. The woman’s direct gaze, however, suggests the strength and dignity of an individual who did not define herself through her employer.