This charming early 19th-century American School bust-length portrait depicts a young lady wearing a dark green dress with a large lace collar, together with a beautiful jade necklace. Her hair is styled into an elaborate arrangement of loops and coils.
The remarkable fashion of the early 1830s was predominantly inspired by the passion and exuberance of Romanticism. Dresses featured gargantuan sleeves with numerous voluminous designs and hairstyles were equally oversized and eye-catching. The overall effect was startling. Ladies on both sides of the Atlantic were expected to stay fully apprised of the emerging trends or face serious embarrassment. Fashion plates were a vital addition to a lady’s boudoir.
The work is unsigned but it’s been previously attributed to a follower of the Pennsylvanian artist, Jacob Eichholtz (1776-1842). Eichholtz was of German descent and initially trained as a coppersmith. He began producing small panel portraits while running a tinsmith’s shop in Lancaster, but as his popularity increased, he switched to art full-time.
There are similarities between his approach and the portrait of the lady we see here, particularly in the angular nature of the design with the emphasis on the shoulders. Eichholtz’s portrait of Mrs. James Patriot Wilson Jr from 1833, which is currently at the North Carolina Museum of Art, is interesting to compare.
Held in a later frame.
Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 23½” x 28” / 60cm x 71cm
Year of creation: c. 1830
Provenance: Private collection, USA / Private collection, UK.
Condition: Cleaned. Revarnished. Canvas relined. Craquelure throughout. The paint layer is stable. Areas of in-painting following a restoration. Frame in excellent condition.
Our reference: BRV1766
