Memorial for Polly Botsford and Her Children

Dateca. 1815

MediumWatercolor and ink on wove paper

DimensionsPrimary support: 18 x 23 1/2in. (45.7 x 59.7cm) and Framed: 22 x 27 3/8 x 1 1/8in.

Credit LineFrom the collection of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller; gift of the Museum of Modern Art

Object number1933.304.1

DescriptionIn left foreground is large tomb beside which at left stands a young lady under a weeping willow. At right of tomb a woman holding two chindren by hand. Two figures are dressed in grey, woman at right has white cap with ribbon band. Pond at right is blue-grey and lawn and plants in foreground in varying shades of green. At right of children are two headstones, which connect with a rail fence and gate in front of building. A fence with high posts and a row of poplar trees in background. At right is a architectural drawing of a building having a series of retreating pointed arches. Building outlines in gray on natural paper background. Fences gray, trees natural colors. Tombstones shaded in light and darker blue. Inscriptions on tombs.
The 2 5/8-inch chamfered, mahogany-veneered frame with gold liner is a period replacement.
Label TextThis mourning picture is extraordinary both in its composition and in its finely rendered, stylized forms. The interplay of the curvilinear and linear elements that create the most interesting geometric shapes in the church contributes to the picture's appeal and to what folk art scholar Mary Black has called "a small masterpiece that presages aspects of modern painting." For instance, the configuration and shape of the large willow tree at left not only balance but also, in its neat curves and rounded forms, reflect the basic church form at right. The church itself is reduced to elements of its framework, functioning more as an idea or a symbolic form than an actual architectural structure.
Genealogical information on Polly Botsford and her two children, Gideon and Polly, remains speculative, although research indicates that the family lived in the Newtown, Connecticut, area. A Pulcrea Fairman, the daughter of Jane and Richard Fairman, was born in Newtown on November 19, 1754, and married Gideon Botsford, Jr., at an unknown date. Among their children were a Gideon and a Polly, presumably the offspring whose names appear on the two smaller tombstones. Pulcrea Botsford may have adopted "Polly" as a nickname.
InscribedThe ink inscription on the large tombstone reads: "SACRED/ to the / Memory/ of/ POLLY, BOTSFORD/ who died/ July 15th 1813/ Aged 59 years". The left of the two smaller tombstones is inscribed: "In/ Memory/ of/ Polly Botsford/ who died/ March 8th/ 1793/ Aged 1 year". The small tombstone on the right bears the inscription: "In/ Memory/ of/ Gideon Botsford/ who died/ December 18th/ 1774/ Aged 4 months".
ProvenanceFound in Connecticut by Edith Gregor Halpert, Downtown Gallery, New York, NY; acquired from Halpert by Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr.; given by Rockefeller to the Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY; given by MoMA to CWF in June 1954.