Mrs. Mary Arthur
This portrait depicts the seventy-six-year-old mother of Eakins’s artist-friend Robert Arthur. As a representation of an elderly sitter absorbed in a traditional task, it recalls other paintings by the artist, such as the portrait of his father in The Writing Master (on view in Gallery 766). In this and related depictions of older women from the time, Eakins used strong contrasts of light and dark to define forms and highlight hands and face, suggesting both manual dexterity and the wisdom of age. This work’s austere palette and quiet eloquence also suggest his study of earlier painters like Rembrandt.
Artwork Details
- Title: Mrs. Mary Arthur
- Artist: Thomas Eakins (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1844–1916 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
- Date: 1900
- Culture: American
- Medium: Oil on canvas
- Dimensions: 24 x 20 in. (61 x 50.8 cm)
- Credit Line: Gift of Mary Arthur Bates, 1965
- Object Number: 65.83
- Curatorial Department: The American Wing
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Thomas Eakins (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1844–1916 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
1880s
Thomas Eakins (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1844–1916 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
1880s
Thomas Eakins (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1844–1916 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
1880s
Thomas Eakins (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1844–1916 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
1883
Thomas Eakins (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1844–1916 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
1880s
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