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| Portraiture Portraiture was by far the most prevalent art form among itinerant painters in the American northeast. These artists spent their careers on the road, seeking commissions, and while most developed distinctive styles and artistic methods, all betray the common circumstances of their nomadic production in rural America. Each of the portraits in these galleries is indebted in some measure to academic conventions. The poses, props, and settings for country portraits were no different than those employed by artists in the cities. These portraits, however, are restrained in every other aspect. They have sharply defined forms, neatly organized compositions with clearly defined spatial arrangements--some with an almost mathematical precision and symmetry--generalized lighting, equal attention to all areas of the canvas, no expressive brushwork, and overall flatness and linearity. A current compelling theory about the look of folk portraits has it that they matched the face of the neatly and geometrically farmed agrarian landscape. In any case, it is important to recognize that folk artists worked according to criteria set by their rural clientele. As a group, the portraits describe socially reticent sitters eager to record a likeness but shy of declaring personality and emotion. Elements of pride and class status are apparent, but circumspect. They portray lasting traits and conditions--including memorials to the dead--rather than transitory mannerisms and situations.
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