Artist James Sanford Ellsworth (1802 - 1874)

Unidentified Gentleman and His Wife

Date1852

DimensionsSight: 3 1/8 × 2 5/8 in. (7.9 × 6.7 cm)

Object numberN0068.1961a-b

Credit LineCollection of the Fenimore Art Museum. Gift of Stephen C. Clark

Photograph by Richard Walker

Label TextEllsworth relied upon several compositional formats. In this pair of portrait miniatures, he posed the couple facing each other in the same handmade frame separated by a thin wooden strip. They are seated on matching, fanciful chairs upholstered in brightly colored green fabric with yellow wood. Variations of these imaginative chairs, painted in orange, red, yellow or green, are found in many of Ellsworth's other miniatures, and lend rhythm and color to his compositions.

From Paul S. D'Ambrosio and Charlotte M. Emans, "Folk Art's Many Faces: Portraits in the New York State Historical Association," Cooperstown: NYSHA, 1987, pp. 74-75.
Exhibition History"The Paintings of James Sanford Ellsworth, Itinerant Folk Artist, 1802-1873," Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Center, Williamsburg, VA, October 13, 1974 - December 1, 1974.

“Folk Art from the Collection of the New York State Historical Association,” Museum of American Folk Art, NY, January 11, 2000 – February 18, 2000.
ProvenanceFound in New London, Connecticut; Frederick Fairchild Sherman, Westport, Connecticut; Mr. and Mrs. Howard Lipman, Wilton, Connecticut; Mr. Stephen C. Clark, Sr., Cooperstown, New York
Bibliography D'Ambrosio, Paul S. and Charlotte M. Emans, "Folk Art's Many Faces: Portraits in the New York State Historical Association," Cooperstown, NY: NYSHA, 1987: 74-75, illustration number 40 on page 75.

Mitchell, Lucy B., "The paintings of James Sanford Ellsworth, Itinerant Folk Artist, 1802-1873." Williamsburg, VA: Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, 1974: 40-41, numbers 74 and 75, and illustrations 74 and 75.

On View

Not on view