Elizabeth Denison
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
overall: 85.4 x 67.6 cm (33 5/8 x 26 5/8 in.) framed: 102.2 x 90.5 x 4.4 cm (40 1/4 x 35 5/8 x 1 3/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Department
CAB
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch
Accession Number
1953.5.35
Art Historical Context
Step into the early American portrait tradition with *Elizabeth Denison*, painted around 1790 by The Den Limner—likely Joseph Steward, a skilled itinerant artist working in Connecticut. This oil-on-canvas portrait captures a poised young woman, emblematic of the post-Revolutionary era when families like the Denisons commissioned such works to affirm their social standing and newfound national identity. Measuring 33⅝ × 26⅝ inches, it reflects the modest yet elegant scale typical of provincial portraiture, accessible to the emerging merchant class. Limners like Steward were folk artists who tra...