Mrs. Alvan Clark (Maria Pease)
1835–40
Medium
Watercolor on ivory
Dimensions
2 1/4 x 1 13/16 in. (5.7 x 4.6 cm)
Classification
Painting, miniature
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Glenn Tilley Morse Collection, Bequest of Glenn Tilley Morse, 1950
Accession Number
50.187.45
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate miniature portrait, *Mrs. Alvan Clark (Maria Pease)*, painted by Alvan Clark around 1835–40, captures the refined likeness of the artist's wife in watercolor on ivory. Measuring just 2¼ × 1⅞ inches, it exemplifies the intimate scale of 19th-century American miniatures, designed as cherished personal mementos—often pinned to clothing or worn as jewelry—to keep loved ones close during travels or separations. Watercolor on ivory was a prized technique for such works, allowing artists to achieve luminous transparency and exquisite detail on the smooth, glowing surface. In early Amer...