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Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné
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Photo: New-York Historical Society
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43.3 U.S. Early Portrait Drawings, Women
Johnson's earliest recorded portrait drawings of women are dated 1845: his portrait of Dolley Madison that indicates the setting and one of his older sister Judith which shows head and neck only. Unlike the portraits of men, his portraits of women are softer in light-dark chiaroscuro and do not exhibit the muscular structure of the face as do those of men. Johnson consolidated his draughtsman’s talents during his sojourn in Boston, where he painted Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and his circle. He took about three days to complete a charcoal portrait. The style of the time was to present portraits in oval frames.
See Technical Information on Johnson's Practices for a discussion of charcoal, black chalk, crayon, and pastel. —PH
Hills no. 43.3.6
Baur no. 316
Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton
New-York Historical Society title: Mrs. Alexander Hamilton (1757–1854)
Alternate titles: Mrs. Alexander Hamilton; Mrs. Alexander Hamilton, née Schuyler; Portrait of Mrs. Alexander Hamilton
1846, March
Locale: Washington, D.C.
Crayon, pencil, and white chalk on paper
14 x 11 in. (35.6 x 27.9 cm)
Signed, dated, and inscribed lower center: Mrs. Alexander Hamilton / From life, in the Capitol / at Washington / Mch. 1846— / E. Johnson
Markings
On frame: Dürr Gallery
Provenance
Eastman Johnson estate/Mrs. Eastman Johnson, New York, 1906 (by bequest)
Durr Collection, March 4, 1907 (by purchase from Mrs. Johnson)
New-York Historical Society, New York, 1907 (by purchase)
Exhibitions
1907a Century Association
Century Association, New York, Memorial Exhibition of Eastman Johnson, February 9–13, 1907, as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton.1920 Kennedy Galleries
Kennedy Galleries, New York, Charcoal Drawings of Eminent Americans by Eastman Johnson, June 1920. (Exhibition catalogue: Kennedy Galleries 1920), no. 15, as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton (1757–1854).1939 Brooklyn Museum
Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, New York, An American Genre Painter: Eastman Johnson, 1824–1906, January 18, 1939–February 26, 1940. (Exhibition catalogue: Baur 1940), no. 316, as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton.1972 Whitney Museum
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Eastman Johnson: Retrospective Exhibition, March 28–May 14, 1972. (Exhibition catalogue: Hills 1972a), no. 3, b/w illus., p. 8, as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton. Traveled to: The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, June 7–July 22, 1972; Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, August 15–September 30, 1972; Milwaukee Art Center, Milwaukee, October 20–December 3, 1972.1980 Schuyler Mansion
Schuyler Mansion State Historical Site, Albany, New York, December 1980–February 1981.References
Hart 1897
Hart, Charles Henry. "Life Portraits of Alexander Hamilton." McClure's Magazine (April 1897), p. 513, illus.: "It has never been reproduced before, and is reproduced now by special permission of the artist, who himself owns it."French 1906
French, Edgar. "An American Portrait Painter of Three Historical Epochs." World's Work 13, no. 2 (December 1906), pp. 8308, 8316, illus.Walton 1906
Walton, William. "Eastman Johnson, Painter." Scribner's Magazine 40 (September 1906), p. 264.Selby 1907
Selby, Mark. "An American Painter: Eastman Johnson." Putnam's Monthly 2 (August 1907), p. 534, illus.New York Times 1907a
"Eastman Johnson's Paintings Shown: Genre Pictures of the Old School at the Century." New York Times, February 11, 1907, "…1846 busts of Mrs. Alexander Hamilton and of Mrs. Dolly Madison in pencil, heightened with white, on brown paper".New-York Historical Society 1915
Catalogue of the Gallery of Art of the New-York Historical Society. New York: New-York Historical Society, 1915, p. 118, no. D-174.Kennedy Galleries 1920
Catalogue of an Exhibition of Charcoal Drawings by Eastman Johnson. New York: Kennedy Galleries, 1920. Exhibition catalogue (1920 Kennedy Galleries), p. 6, no. 15, as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton, née Schuyler.Bolton 1923
Bolton, Theodore. Early American Portrait Draughtsmen in Crayon. New York: F. F. Sherman, 1923, p. 39, no. 10, as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton.Baur 1940
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), pp. 30, 74, no. 316, as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton.Devere 1940
Devere, Howard. "New York Exhibition Reviews." Magazine of Art (Washington, DC) 33, no. 1 (January 1940), p. 40.Hills 1972a
Hills, Patricia. Eastman Johnson: Retrospective Exhibition. New York: Clarkson N. Potter, 1972. Exhibition catalogue (1972 Whitney Museum), p. 8, no. 3, illus., as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton.Hills 1977
Hills, Patricia. The Genre Paintings of Eastman Johnson: The Sources and Development of His Style and Themes. New York: Garland Publishing, 1977, p. 193, fig. 5, illus., as Mrs. Alexander Hamilton.Hills Examination / Opinion
Examination date(s): March 30, 1971
Examination notes: Paper has darkened to brown. Nice frame. Intelligent-looking. Dürr Gallery on frame.
Sitter Biography
Sitter: Hamilton, Elizabeth Schuyler
Biography:
Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton (1757–1854). Daughter of Major General Philip John Schuyler and Catherine (Van Rensselaer) Schuyler. Married Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Hamilton (m. 1780), then aide-de-camp to General Washington, at the Pastures, the Schuyler mansion near Albany [New-York Historical Society object record, February 20, 2019].
Related work
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Hamilton, Elizabeth Schuyler (Mrs. Alexander Hamilton)
Keywords
- Portrait pose:
- Portrait sitter families:
Record last updated March 24, 2022. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Hills, Patricia, and Abigael MacGibeny. "Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, 1846, March (Hills no. 43.3.6)." Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné. www.eastmanjohnson.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=923 (accessed on May 6, 2024).