Study for portrait, Bell Tilghman
Medium
figures
Classification
figures
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Miss Stell Andersen
Accession Number
1968-101-5-aa
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
**Study for Portrait, Bell Tilghman** Harriet Blackstone (1864–1939) is a captivating preparatory sketch from around 1920, housed in the Smithsonian American Art's collection of figures. As a study focused on the human form, this work captures the artist's initial explorations for a formal portrait of Bell Tilghman, likely emphasizing pose, proportion, and expression through quick, expressive lines. Blackstone, an American artist active during a transformative era in U.S. art, contributed to the growing tradition of portraiture that 19th-century realism and emerging modernist influences. Crea...