American Paintings 1750–1900

On View: West Building, Main Floor

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173 artworks on view.

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A young, pale-skinned girl sits on a wooden chair in this vertical portrait painting. Her body is angled to our right so her feet are cut off by the bottom right corner of the canvas. She has round cheeks, green eyes, a dainty mouth, and a cleft chin. A ruffled white bonnet tied around the crown with a carnation-pink bow covers her hair. Her white dress has short, flutter sleeves, a straight neckline across the chest, and a high waist. The gossamer-white skirt falls to her feet and has decorative bands near the hem. A cherry-red sash is tied around her waist and falls over the back of the chair. The girl holds a bunch of red strawberries in one hand and holds one up by her chest with the other. The background is dark bronze brown.

The Strawberry Girl

Ammi Phillips

c. 1830

Oil on canvas  Accession ID  1953.5.59

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M63
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Newport Mountain, Mount Desert

Frederic Edwin Church

1851

Oil on canvas  Accession ID  2025.89.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M64
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A dirt path winds through a dense forest with leaves that glow gold around silvery-gray boulders in this vertical landscape painting. Close to us, the boulders are partially covered with moss and growth in shades of green and russet red. Sunlight from the upper right catches a sapling crowned with flame-red leaves that angles in from the lower right corner of the painting. Beyond it leafy yellow-green shrubs crowd beside two more putty-gray boulders. The path recedes just left of center and is lined by trees covered with rough bark. The path ends at a fiery copper glow in the distance. The artist signed and dated the painting in the lower right corner: “WM. T. Richards Phil. 1863.”

October

William Trost Richards

1863

Oil on canvas  Accession ID  2003.29.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M64
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This painting shows a small stream surrounded by brown rocks and green foliage. Golden sunlight illuminates the scene, highlighting the vegetation, trees, hills, and sky in various shades of green, blue, and brown. The water of the stream is clear, showing the brown ground beneath while also reflecting some of the nearby greenery. The sliver of sky above the distant green mountain is bright blue, with a few wispy white clouds.

Scene in the Catskills

Paul Weber

1858

Oil on canvas  Accession ID  2014.136.108

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M64
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This is a painting of a woman reaching to pick a water lily from a pond. She is crouching atop a fallen log, leaning over to submerge her right hand in the water. She wears a long gray dress with a striped, brown cloth in the front like an apron, with a white cloth tied around her neck. She has pale skin and dark brown hair tied in an updo. As her face is pointed downward towards the water, her facial features are mostly obscured. In her left hand, she holds a cluster of other water lilies. The water surrounding the log is speckled with lily pads, more white lilies, and tall reeds. The water is mostly brown, with the reflection of the woman and the reflection of a blue sky at the bottom of the painting, although we can't see the sky itself. In the background, dark green plants and foliage surround the edge of the pond.

Gathering Lilies

Eastman Johnson

1865

Oil on board  Accession ID  2008.66.3

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M68
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Apple Blossoms in a Vase

Martin Johnson Heade

1867

Oil on board  Accession ID  2025.89.6

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M69
A white man in military uniform rides a horse in front of a regiment of five rows of Black troops in this sculpture, which is painted entirely in gold. The artist created a shallow, stage-like space with an arched top so the men are sculpted in three dimensions, though they become more compressed as they move back in space. The men and horse face our right in profile in this view. The man on the horse has a pointed, straight nose and a goatee. He wears a cap with a flat top and narrow brim, a knee-length coat, gloves, and knee-high boots with spurs. He holds a thin sword down by the side of the horse with his right hand and holds the reins of the horse with his left. The horse’s head is pulled upward by the short reins, and its mouth is open around the bit. About twenty soldiers are lined up in rows beyond the horse, and they march in unison. They carry blankets rolled atop knapsacks, canteens, and rifles resting on their right shoulders. However, the details of how their uniforms bunch up around their equipment and the way their caps have been molded and fit is unique to each person. Their ages also vary from young and cleanshaven to bearded, older men. Two men carry furled flags near the back, to our left, and a drummer boy plays at the head of the regiment, to our right. All the men look straight ahead, their lips closed. A woman in a billowing robe floats above them under the arched top of the sculpture with her eyes closed. Her left arm is outstretched, and she holds a laurel branch and poppies close to her body with her right arm. An inscription in the upper right corner is created with raised capital letters: “OMNIA RELINQVIT SERVARE REMPVBLICAM.” A longer inscription is carved into the base along the bottom edge of the memorial, also in all caps: “ROBERT GOVLD SHAW KILLED WHILE LEADING THE ASSVLT ON FORT WAGNER JVLY TWENTY THIRD EIGHTEEN HVNDRED AND SIXTY THREE.” The artist’s signature is inscribed In the lower right corner, in smaller letters: “AVGVTVS SAINT GAVDEN M-D-C-C-C-L X X X X V I I I.”

The Shaw 54th Regiment Memorial

Augustus Saint-Gaudens

1900

Patinated plaster  Accession ID  X.15233

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M66
This painting shows a woman standing outdoors, facing the left. She has pale skin, and her face is in shadow, obscured by a wide-brimmed flat white hat with a red stripe around the edge, tied with a black bow behind her head. She wears a long black dress with a fitted bodice, a bustle, and black lacy decorations. She has a red bag that appears to hang from her waist and wears tan gloves. In her hand she holds a small rectangular object that could be a small bag or closed book. She stands on a grassy field with a body of water in the background under the light blue cloudy sky. A small white sheep drinks from a saucer in the bottom left corner, and more sheep are visible grazing in the background on the right. A few white sailboats dot the calm water on the horizon.

Lambs, Nantucket

Eastman Johnson

1874

Oil on board  Accession ID  2012.89.3

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M68
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This painting depicts two whole oranges, a peeled orange, and a glass goblet filled with a dark orange liquid. The peeled orange is in the center, with the two whole oranges on either side. The glass goblet sits behind the oranges, partially hidden by the peeled orange. There are small orange rinds sitting at the bottom of the glass in the dark liquid. The objects rest on a light brown surface, and the wall behind them is black.

Still Life with Oranges and Goblet of Wine

John Frederick Peto

1880-1890s

Oil on artist's board  Accession ID  1999.79.32

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M69
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Still Life with Roses, Lilies, and Forget-Me-Nots in a Glass Vase

Martin Johnson Heade

1869

Oil on canvas  Accession ID  2025.89.8

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M69
A clear glass pitcher filled with white milk and a plate of bright red strawberries are the main focus of this painting. The plate of strawberries is on the left, and wide green leaves and small white flowers extend beyond the plate to the left and right. The glass pitcher is placed to the right of the strawberries, reflecting small squares of light. The surface under the plate and pitcher is blue-gray with hints of wood grain, and the wall behind them is dark brown, with an area of lighter brown on the right.

Strawberries and Cream

Raphaelle Peale

1816

Oil on wood  Accession ID  2014.18.34

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M69
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This painting depicts a black slate chalkboard with a wooden frame hanging from a nail on a wooden wall. Hanging from the same nail is also a white pipe and two boxes. The chalkboard is vertical, and its wooden frame has the words "CHEW," "TIGER," and "BRIGHT * SWEET" printed on it. The slate has words and drawings in white chalk on it, including a tic-tac-toe game, a simple tiger illustration with a label "A TIGER," two stick figures, three multiplication problems, and text reading "DEZE IZ DE KIND ME DAD UZEZ DERE BULLY," with the Zs standing in for a backwards S. Of the two hanging boxes, one is dark blue with black text, including the label "Cut Plug," and the other is white with teal designs, and is tied together with several long matches. The wooden wall behind the objects is a dark gray brown.

Slate, Pipe, Tobacco, and Box of Matches

Peter McCallion

c. 1890/1900

Oil on canvas  Accession ID  2015.19.195

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M65
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