Mrs. Jerathmael Bowers
ca. 1763
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
49 7/8 x 39 3/4 in. (126.7 x 101 cm)
Classification
Painting
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1915
Accession Number
15.128
Tags
Art Historical Context
John Singleton Copley's *Mrs. Jerathmael Bowers (ca. 1763) captures the poised elegance of a prominent Boston merchant's wife during the colonial era, just before the American Revolution Copley, America's foremost portraitist of the time, painted this oil-on-canvas work with his signature realism, influenced by English traditions yet distinctly direct and lifelike. At nearly 50 by 40 inches, it the subject in a three-quarter view, her detailed lace and silk gown reflecting the prosperity of New England's elite. The inclusion of a loyal dog at her feet adds a touch of warmth and symbolism—pets...
About the Artist
John Singleton Copley · 1738–1815
John Singleton Copley (1738–1815) was the greatest American painter of the colonial era and one of the finest portraitists in the English-speaking world. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, he was largely self-taught, learning from mezzotint reproductions of European paintings and from his stepfather Peter Pelham, an engraver. By his early twenties, Copley had established himself as Boston's leading po...