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Exhibition History“Artist and Visionary: William Matthew Prior Revealed,” American Folk Art Museum, New York, New York, January 24, 2013 – May 27, 2013; Fenimore Art Museum, Cooperstown, NY, May 26, 2012 – December 31, 2012.
BibliographyJacquelyn Oak and Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw, Artist and Visionary: William Matthew Prior (exh. cat. New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2012).
Paul S. D’Ambrosio and Charlotte M. Emans, Folk Art’s Many Faces: Portraits in the New York State Historical Association (Cooperstown, NY: Fenimore Art Museum, 1987), pp.133-14.
Artist
William Matthew Prior
(1806 - 1873)
Mrs. G. Brightman
Date1844
MediumOil on cardboard
DimensionsSight: 13 7/16 × 9 1/4 in. (34.1 × 23.5 cm)
Object numberN0293.1959
Credit LineCollection of the Fenimore Art Museum. Gift of Anne Brightman
Photograph by Richard Walker
Label TextPrior defined the facial features of these two subjects with the loose, nervous brushwork that characterizes his popular, least expensive painting style (see N0292.59). The facial modeling is minimal; thick lines of brown paint outline the sitters' eyes, eyelids, noses and mouths. Ears, however, are sketchy and ill-defined. The creases in Mr. Brightman's forehead are actually grooves which Prior made in the wet design layer, allowing the lighter color of the underpaint to show. A light shade of salmon pink lends color to the subjects' cheeks and lips. Mrs. Brightman's dress is outlined with bold, dark lines, while her husband's black suit is defined by lightly applied lines of white pigment.
Exhibition History“Artist and Visionary: William Matthew Prior Revealed,” American Folk Art Museum, New York, New York, January 24, 2013 – May 27, 2013; Fenimore Art Museum, Cooperstown, NY, May 26, 2012 – December 31, 2012.
BibliographyJacquelyn Oak and Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw, Artist and Visionary: William Matthew Prior (exh. cat. New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2012).
Paul S. D’Ambrosio and Charlotte M. Emans, Folk Art’s Many Faces: Portraits in the New York State Historical Association (Cooperstown, NY: Fenimore Art Museum, 1987), pp.133-14.
On View
Not on view