Some of Johnson’s most memorable paintings were his small scale compositions of family groups. Such works as these, traditionally called “conversation pieces,” trace their pedigree to England and seventeenth-century Holland. They were commissioned group portraits of wealthy patrons as they wanted to be seen, usually surrounded by sumptuous furnishing and a coterie of family and friends. —PH
Museum of the City of New York object record, 2014: "The sitters are James Abercrombie Burden, 1833–1906, Mary Margaret Proudfit Irvin [Burden], 1874–1920, James Abercrombie Burden, Jr. or II, born 1871–1932 (the donor's father in-law) and Richard Irvin Burden, 1873–1900 (the younger child in the center of the painting)."
Hills 2017: Very thinly painted. Perhaps E.J. was attempting an "impressionist" style. Figures tend to disappear. The underpainting shows through in many places. Mrs. Burden's arm seems to disappear.
James Abercrombie Burden (1833–?). Ironmaster and inventor. Married to Mary Margaret Proudfit Irvin Burden; father of James Abercrombie, Jr., Richard Irvin, Williams Proudfit, and Arthur Scott.
- Portrait pose:
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