Taking a Profile

DateProbably 1832-1837

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsApprox. unframed dimensions pending stretching: 29 x 24 1/4in. (73.7 x 61.6cm)

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number2008.100.5

DescriptionA double, half-length portrait showing two young women almost three-quarter length. The figure nearer the viewer occupies most of the pictorial space and is seated (though her seat is not shown), her body turned one-quarter towards the viewer's left, her gaze on the viewer. She wears a long-sleeved, light blue dress with large, "leg-o-mutton" sleeves, a gathered bodice continuing off the shoulders with a broadly V-shaped neckline, and a self-belt at her natural waist. Her light brown hair is parted in the middle, curled above her ears, and (presumably) pulled into a knot at the back. Her eyes are blue. She wears a gold band on the ring finger of her proper left hand, and the index finger of that hand is inserted into the pages of a half-shut book, as though keeping her place in the volume. Her proper right hand rests in her lap.

The second woman is shown behind the first, her head turned in profile as she traces (onto a sheet of paper adhered to the wall) the outline of the cast shadow of the head of the first woman. The light source is not shown but, by deduction, is off to the viewer's right. Only the forearms and part of the head of the second woman are visible. The second woman has lighter brown (or dark blonde) hair, which appears to be parted in the middle and which hangs around her face and down her neck in ringlets. She traces with her proper right hand; her proper left hand is thrown casually around the shoulder of the first woman, her hand dangling nonchalantly down over the first woman's chest. The background is dark.

Artist unidentified.

The painting was acquired in November 2008 lacking both an auxiliary support and a frame.
Label TextArtists offered portraits in an amazing variety of poses, sizes, formats, and mediums—and at correspondingly varying prices. Because profile likenesses derived from easily transcribed outlines, they were clients' simplest, quickest, cheapest options. Profiles were fashionable, too, for the pose was widely associated with neo-classicism, or the revival of interest in early Greek and Roman cultures. Typically, however, the pose was used for small-scale portraits often on paper, not for larger oil paintings.

This picture illustrates the most basic way of capturing a profile: after placing the sitter between a strong light and a sheet of paper, the portraitist traced the shadow cast by the head. Then, the outline could be solidly filled to create a silhouette, or interior details could be added to create a side view. The simplicity of the technique ensured its broad use; professionals and amateurs alike employed it, the latter often making it a parlor entertainment.

ProvenanceVictor de Pauw (1902-1971); sold at the Potomack Company (auction gallery), Alexandria, Va., 1 November 2008, whence acquired by CWF's vendor/source.

Exhibition(s)