Innocence
c. 1830
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
overall: 68.9 x 56.5 cm (27 1/8 x 22 1/4 in.) framed: 82.1 x 69.4 x 3.5 cm (32 5/16 x 27 5/16 x 1 3/8 in.)
Classification
Painting
Department
CAB
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch
Accession Number
1980.62.30
Art Historical Context
**Innocence**, an evocative oil on canvas painting from around 1830, captures the essence of early 19th-century American. Created by an anonymous artist, this work measures 68.9 x 56.5 cm, a modest scale typical for intimate portraits or genre scenes of the period. The title *Innocence* suggests a tender portrayal, likely evoking childhood purity—a common theme in American folk painting, where everyday virtues were celebrated amid the young nation's growing cultural identity. Oil on canvas was a favored medium in the early 1800s, allowing artists to achieve luminous skin tones, soft fabrics, ...
About the Artist
American 19th Century
The artist cataloged as "American, 19th Century" represents a collective of unidentified painters active in the United States during the nineteenth century, with 380 known artworks preserved in this virtual museum's collection. These works span a diverse array of genres typical of the era, including portraits, landscapes, still lifes, and genre scenes, reflecting the burgeoning artistic output of ...