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DS2007-0002
Flowers in Fluted Compote
DS2007-0002

Flowers in Fluted Compote

Date1827
Artist M. D. Rouse (fl. 1827)
OriginAmerica, Kentucky, Shelby County, Shelbyville
MediumPaint on velvet
DimensionsUnframed: 11 3/4 x 11 5/8in. (29.8 x 29.5cm) and Framed: 13 1/2 x 13 5/8 x 1/2in.
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number2006.403.1
DescriptionAn arrangement of mixed flowers (pink roses, pink carnations, blue morning glories, white lily-of-the-valley, and other flowers, along with green foliage and twining tendrils) loosely arranged in a footed white compote defined in gray and bearing a gadrooned upper edge and lobed bowl. The compote is set on a mound of green suggesting grass (rather than a mat or tabletop), with an irregular streak of brown below it perhaps representing earth. Inscriptions appear to right and left of the foot of the compote and another on the foot of the compote. The background is left unpainted.
The 1-inch flat, mahogany-veneered frame appears to be an early-to-mid 20th-century replacement.
Label TextA great deal of information is available regarding the piece's presenter, Mrs. John Tevis (Julia Ann Hieronymous)(1799-1880), who, with her husband, founded another Shelbyville school, the Science Hill Female Academy, in 1825. Tevis is well known today for her support of female education, particularly her belief in the appropriateness of teaching girls subjects such as math and science that, in the period, often were taught only to boys.

At present, Matilda W. Montgomery has not been conclusively identified, nor is it known what she did to earn Tevis's "regard," as noted in the inscription on the picture. As for the artist, an account book from Julia Tevis records one "Maria Rouse" as a student in 1825. Possibly she painted the still life, which is unusual in having an extensive inscription that identifies it as a presentation piece.

InscribedAll inscriptions are in script in green paint. At lower left is "ShelbyVille Academy" and at lower right is "Painted by M. [D.?] Ro[use?]". At lower center is "May 4th 1827". In the center of the bowl of the compote is "M. W. M." On the foot of the compote is "Presented/To/Matilda W. Montgomery/As a testimony of Regard -- By/Julia A. Tevis".
MarkingsA commercially-printed label removed from the paper dust cover on the back of the picture reads: "GALLERY FRAMING & GIFTS/Distinctive Custom Framing/Route 2 Box 701-A/CARMEL, CA 93923/(408) 624-4304".
ProvenanceThe Subjacks (AARFAM's vendors) acquired the painting from "a West Coast client" in 2006. Beyond the information gleaned from the inscriptions on the piece itself, no more specific or earlier history has been documented.