Study of Woman for "Philosophy and Christian Art"
Medium
figures
Classification
figures
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Bequest of Erskine Hewitt
Accession Number
1942-50-200
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Daniel Huntington's *Study of Woman for "Philosophy and Christian Art"* (8) offers a glimpse into the meticulous preparatory process of one of America's foremost 19th-century painters. Born in 1816, Huntington was a leading figure in the National Academy of Design—serving as its president from 1862 to 1869—and bridged the Romantic Hudson River School with more academic, neoclassical styles. This study, likely a preparatory sketch or oil bozzetto, captures a female model posed thoughtfully, serving as a building block for his grand allegorical mural *Philosophy and Christian Art*, commissioned ...