Polly Ouldfield of Winyah

Jeremiah Theus, Polly Ouldfield of Winyah, ca. 1761, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of International Business Machines Corporation, 1969.130
Copied Jeremiah Theus, Polly Ouldfield of Winyah, ca. 1761, oil on canvas, 30 1⁄8 x 25 1⁄8 in. (76.5 x 63.8 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of International Business Machines Corporation, 1969.130
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Artwork Details

Title
Polly Ouldfield of Winyah
Artist
Date
ca. 1761
Location
Dimensions
30 1⁄8 x 25 1⁄8 in. (76.5 x 63.8 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of International Business Machines Corporation
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Portrait female — Ouldfield, Polly — child
Object Number
1969.130
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1969.130

Artwork Description

Polly Ouldfield was born into a life of privilege. Her father was a member of the Commons House of Assembly in London, and records indicate that he owned land in Georgetown in 1752. Polly's husband was a landowner from Charleston, South Carolina, who served as Commissary of Militia in the Georgetown District during the Revolutionary War. (Middleton, Jeremiah Theüs: Colonial Artist of Charles Town, 1953) In this portrait the landscape beyond the window suggests the Ouldfields' significant landholdings, and Polly's luminous, lace-trimmed silk dress embellished with decorative pearls also conveys the richness of planter society. Jeremiah Theüs often showed his subjects lit from above, as in this portrait.