Portrait of a Lady 1834

Moses B. Russell created this watercolor on ivory, a ‘Portrait of a Lady’, in 1837. The fashion she wears is typical of the period but how does the act of portraiture itself define this period? Looking at it now, the small scale is striking. It was made to be kept close, worn as jewelry, or displayed in the home. Portrait miniatures were popular keepsakes, forms of remembrance, and markers of social status during the 18th and 19th centuries. Think of who had the means to commission such art. This was a privilege afforded to a select tier of society. Here, the sitter's delicate features, elaborate lace collar, and carefully arranged hair all signify refinement, a visual shorthand for belonging to a certain social stratum. What can we learn from this image about the social world inhabited by both the artist and his subject? Art historians rely on a wide range of resources, from costume history to genealogical records, to better understand the lives and networks that gave meaning to works like this one.