Girl of the Bangs-Phelps Family 1845 - 1848

Curator: We're looking at Erastus Salisbury Field's “Girl of the Bangs-Phelps Family,” painted between 1845 and 1848. It’s oil on canvas, and you can find it here at the Met. Editor: It's captivating. Immediately, I'm struck by the overwhelming use of white offset by such a busy, folk-art-esque floor covering. The dress almost appears luminescent, yet the overall effect feels…stark. Curator: Yes, that tension is key. The white, in Western symbolism, traditionally signifies purity, innocence, and a sort of blank slate. She holds the book close, indicating she is far from being unformed. What kind of status do you think whiteness implies here, in relationship to this figure? Editor: Materially, producing such a pristine white, that resists fading over time would have required expertise, costly pigments and attention to technique. In this portrait, it broadcasts a particular kind of privilege, tied up with leisure, wealth and access. Her proximity to knowledge gives that whiteness even more meaning. Curator: Precisely! This combination—purity and learnedness—positions her as an ideal. We're meant to see her as embodying both virtue and intellectual potential, all wrapped in a carefully crafted presentation, signified further by her red slippers, and jeweled armbands. There’s so much contained in these symbols. Editor: Absolutely. Looking closer, you notice the way her garments are constructed--the massive sleeves, with that carefully gathered lace trim around the collar. It almost acts as a frame within a frame. You can see the material reality of the painting and imagine the long hours required to create the illusion. But where does the individual end and this portrait begin? How much is performance? Curator: That question haunts portraiture generally. The red shoes on the painted floor function symbolically, almost as the figure stands upon worldly wealth as an earned status that lies just beyond our grasp as viewers. They become something just out of our reach. Editor: So much to unpack! This painting is not only beautiful in its way but loaded with implications concerning craft, class, gender and identity. I could spend hours in front of this canvas. Curator: It is a layered work and speaks volumes about the era it emerged from. A young girl holds our gaze in a time capsule. Thank you for joining me to contemplate her place in it.