Portrait of a Lady

James Sanford Ellsworth, Portrait of a Lady, ca. 1850, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Mary Elizabeth Spencer, 1999.27.12
Copied James Sanford Ellsworth, Portrait of a Lady, ca. 1850, watercolor on paper, sight 3 1⁄2 x 2 3⁄4 in. (8.9 x 7.0 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Mary Elizabeth Spencer, 1999.27.12
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Portrait of a Lady
Artist
Date
ca. 1850
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
sight 3 1⁄2 x 2 3⁄4 in. (8.9 x 7.0 cm)
Credit Line
Bequest of Mary Elizabeth Spencer
Mediums
Mediums Description
watercolor on paper
Classifications
Subjects
  • Portrait female — unidentified — waist length
Object Number
1999.27.12
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1999.27.12

Artwork Description

These miniatures display James Sanford Ellsworth’s unique approach to painting his sitters. They are shown in profile, seated in a Victorian armchair with their hands crossed. The chair appears to dissolve into a swirling arabesque, with a “clover-leaf” halo surrounding the sitter’s head and cloudlike forms in the background.