Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné
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© 1999 Christie’s Images Limited
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18.0 Mother and Child
The mother and child theme in art not only has references to Christian art but also to the realities of caregiving by women. Johnson seems to have been particularly drawn to the theme as the result of his wife’s caring for their daughter, Ethel. —PH
Hills no. 18.0.13
Baur no. 147
Woman and Child
Alternate title: Mother and Child
c.1872
Oil on academy board
11 1/4 x 9 1/4 in. (28.6 x 23.5 cm)
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Description / Remarks
Hills, 2021: This is likely a portrait, perhaps of Johnson’s daughter, Ethel. Because the woman wears a bonnet in an interior scene, the adult is likely not Johnson’s wife, Elizabeth, but may have been a visiting relative. This speculation is supported by the ownership of the painting by Philip J. Wilson, Jr., a descendant of Johnson’s sister Judith Farnum.
References
Baur, John I. H. An American Genre Painter: Eastman Johnson, 1824–1906. Brooklyn, NY: Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, 1940. Exhibition catalogue (1939 Brooklyn Museum), no. 147, as Woman and Child.
Hills Examination / Opinion
Examination date(s): 1999-10-09 (at Christie's)
Examination notes: Graphite lines on bonnet sash, profile of nose, eyes and eyebrows of baby. Sweet and intimate.
Conkling, Ethel Eastman Johnson (Mrs. Alfred Ronald Conkling, later Mrs. William H. Holden)
Keywords
- Portrait sitter families:
- Subject matter:
Record last updated May 16, 2022. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Hills, Patricia, and Abigael MacGibeny. "Woman and Child, c.1872 (Hills no. 18.0.13)." Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné. www.eastmanjohnson.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=223 (accessed on April 25, 2024).