Gentle Critics (The Portfolio)
1872
Medium
watercolor over traces of graphite with gum arabic and white gouache on wove paper
Dimensions
sheet: 50.8 × 36.83 cm (20 × 14 1/2 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
William B. O'Neal Fund
Accession Number
2020.123.1
Art Historical Context
**Gentle Critics (The)**, created by Emily Farmer in 2, captures a charming moment likely centered on art appreciation or critique, evoking the intimate world of 19th-century artistic circles. As a drawing classified by the National Gallery of Art this work reflects the era's growing interest in domestic scenes and the social role of art, where portfolios of sketches were shared among friends and critics. Farmer, though lesser-known today, contributed to a vibrant tradition of watercolorists who blended fine art with illustrative precision during the post-Civil War period in America. The medi...