Maternity
Benjamin West
1784
Medium
Red chalk on thin off-white laid paper, mounted on off-white laid paper
Dimensions
14 5/16 x 11 9/16 in. (36.4 x 29.4 cm)
Classification
Drawing
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Morris K. Jesup Fund, 2002
Accession Number
2002.1
Tags
NursingChildrenMothersWomen
About the Artist
Benjamin West · 1738–1820
Benjamin West, born on October 10, 1738, in Springfield, Pennsylvania, emerged as one of the most influential painters of his era despite being entirely self-taught. Growing up in a Quaker family in colonial America, West displayed prodigious talent from childhood, creating portraits and religious scenes with materials gifted by local patrons. By his late teens, he had garnered enough support to t...