The Flower Girl

Charles Cromwell Ingham American, born Ireland
1846
Not on view
The Irish-born Ingham was familiar with European depictions of street vendors hawking their wares. The choice of a flower girl as a subject for this work—rather than, for example, a newsboy—reveals the artist’s preference for female models and his passion for painting clearly identifiable flowers with chromatic lushness. The young woman’s plain dress and head covering contrast with her basket holding nearly twenty intensely colored flowers. In her right hand, she offers a potted fuchsia in a gesture emblematic of Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers. The plant itself is symbolic of love.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Flower Girl
  • Artist: Charles Cromwell Ingham (American (born Ireland), Dublin 1786–1863 New York)
  • Date: 1846
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 36 x 28 3/8 in. (91.4 x 72.1 cm)
  • Credit Line: Gift of William Church Osborn, 1902
  • Object Number: 02.7.1
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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