Description:
miniature
Label Text:
Anson Dickinson’s likeness of Abigail May conveys compassion and sorrow. Using soft white, delicate, seamless strokes, especially evident in her kind but weary eyes, Dickinson evokes a benevolent nature. May spent much of her life working on philanthropic causes, particularly the Boston Female Asylum, an orphanage in her native city. The heavy lines and deep shadows that mark much of her face must attest to May’s sadness at the recent death of her son, John. She wears traditional black mourning attire and a brooch in his memory.
The box that holds May’s portrait ensured its safety; its format anticipates the manner in which daguerreotypes would be presented in the 1830s.
Written by Timothy Clark (Class of 2012)
American Art Intern, Spring 2011
Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=AC+1947.112 |
