Joel Chandler Harris
Medium
Painting
Classification
Painting
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Walter T. Forbes Conserved with funds from the Smithsonian Women's Committee
Accession Number
NPG.71.38
Tags
About this artwork
Walter T. Forbes, Lookout Mountain, Tenn., nephew of artist; gift 1971 to NPG.
Art Historical Context
This charming miniature portrait of Joel Chandler Harris, painted around 1914 by Lucy May Stanton (1875–1931), captures the beloved American author in a moment of quiet contemplation. Seated in an armchair with a hat and his signature mustache, Harris is depicted with the warmth and detail characteristic of Stanton's specialty in miniature paintings. These small-scale works, often larger than a few inches, demand exquisite precision and were prized in early 20th-century America for their intimacy and lifelike quality, blending portraiture with jewelry-like elegance. Harris, a novelist, humori...