Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné
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Photo: Courtesy of Heritage Auctions
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25.1 Women Indoors
Johnson’s wife, Elizabeth, no doubt turned his attention to representations of women alone—either in interiors or outside. Such women are often lost in thought and suggest sentient beings with an inner life. In my interviews with descendants of Johnson’s siblings, she is presented as an independent woman. Johnson painted her portrait in which she assumes the posture of a woman who thinks on her own (also see theme 31.3). —PH
Hills no. 25.1.4
1907 Sale no. 69
Lady Playing Harp
Alternate titles: Lady Playing a Harp; The Harpist; Woman Playing a Harp; Woman Playing Harp
c.1860–69
Oil on board, laid down on aluminum
28 5/8 x 19 5/8 in. (72.7 x 49.8 cm)
Initialed lower right: E.J.
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Description/Remarks
Hills, 2022: Although John I. H. Baur owned and annotated a copy of the catalogue of Johnson's 1907 Estate Sale, he did not include this work in his own 1940 catalogue listing; he must have obtained it after publication.
1907 Estate Sale 
No. 69: "A young lady, dressed in a short-sleeved Empire gown of ecru satin, sits playing a large harp, which is partly gilded and partly painted red. The light falls upon her outstretched left hand and the lower part of her figure. The head and shoulders are in luminous shadow. In the background is suggested the interior of a room panelled [sic] in mahogany."
"Signed at the lower right, E. J.
Height, 27 ½ inches; width, 19 inches."
[Annotation: “60.00”]
"Signed at the lower right, E. J.
Height, 27 ½ inches; width, 19 inches."
[Annotation: “60.00”]
Provenance
Private collection, 1981 (by purchase)
Private collection, Bedford, New York
Private collection (by purchase)
Exhibitions
Century Association, New York, Memorial Exhibition of Eastman Johnson, February 9–13, 1907, as Lady Playing Harp.
References
Catalogue of Finished Pictures, Studies, and Drawings by the Late Eastman Johnson, N.A. New York: American Art Association, February 1907. Sale catalogue, n.p., no. 69, as Lady Playing Harp.
Catalogue of Antique and Modern Oil Paintings and Water Colors, Sold to Close Various Estates and from Private Owners. New York: Fifth Avenue Art Galleries, April 20, 1928. Sale catalogue, n.p., no. 196, as The Harpist.
Oil Paintings, The Estate of Ella A. Rogers, also by order of Miss S. M. Jarvis and Mrs. J. L. Cunningham and Others. New York: Silo's, February 24, 1928. Sale catalogue, n.p., no. 463, as The Harpist.
Douglass, Julie M. "Lifetime Exhibition History." In Eastman Johnson: Painting America, by Teresa A. Carbone and Patricia Hills. Brooklyn, NY: Brooklyn Museum of Art, in association with Rizzoli International Publications, 1999. Exhibition catalogue, p. 266, as Lady Playing Harp.
Hills Examination/Opinion
Examination date(s): 2002-08-30
Examination notes: Sienna background flat; precise lines as if indication of paneling. Bright gold on column. Glittery. Below waist: vague. Ground underpainting used as middle tones. Harp - red. White shirt. Freely done. Rug. Turquoise—loose—nice. Fill in eye by restorer. Highlight on chin and neck. Precision of base of harp. Fingers nice.
Record last updated April 7, 2022. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Hills, Patricia, and Abigael MacGibeny. "Lady Playing Harp, c.1860–69 (Hills no. 25.1.4)." In Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné. www.eastmanjohnson.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=337 (accessed on May 1, 2025).