Mrs. Richard Yates

Unidentified, Mrs. Richard Yates, ca. 1790, watercolor on ivory, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Catherine Walden Myer Fund, 1956.1.2
Copied Unidentified, Mrs. Richard Yates, ca. 1790, watercolor on ivory, sight 1 7⁄8 x 1 1⁄2 in. (4.7 x 3.8 cm) oval, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Catherine Walden Myer Fund, 1956.1.2
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Mrs. Richard Yates
Artist
Unidentified
Date
ca. 1790
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
sight 1 7⁄8 x 1 1⁄2 in. (4.7 x 3.8 cm) oval
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Catherine Walden Myer Fund
Mediums
Mediums Description
watercolor on ivory
Classifications
Subjects
  • Portrait female — Yates, Richard, Mrs. — bust
  • Portrait female — Brass, Catherine — bust
Object Number
1956.1.2
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1956.1.2

Artwork Description

Catherine Brass Yates was the wife of Richard Yates, a senior partner with the New York law firm Yates & Pollock. In this miniature, Mrs. Yates wears a dress and fichu (a scarf worn to fill in a neckline), and her hair is mostly hidden beneath a large bonnet. The painter focused on the sitter’s eyes, which are downcast to suggest a moment of reflection.