Portrait of Mary Blaikley Stith (Mrs. Griffin Stith, 1726-1784)
Dateca. 1745
Attributed to
William Dering (active 1734/1735-1755)
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsOverall: 37 x 27in. (94 x 68.6cm)
Credit LineGift of Christopher Johnston VII
Object number2016-199,A&C
DescriptionPortrait of a seated woman wearing a blue gown. The bodice of the gown is cinched narrowly at the waist and fastened with a decorative pearl and red stone pin just below the bust. The white ruffles of her shift can be seen peeking out at her elbows and around the gown's scooped neckline. The sitter holds a piece of red cloth to her shoulder with her proper left hand, although this may be a later addition. In addition to the pin on her chest the sitter is wearing a pearl choker, drop pearl earrings, as well as a string of pearls in her hair, which is pulled back in a bun with drop curls. In the background, to the right of the sitter, is a column and what appears to be a window looking out onto a landscape scene.Label TextMary Stith was the only child of Williamsburg watch maker William Blaikley and Catharine Kaidyee Blaikley, a prominent midwife credited with delivering “upwards of three Thousand Children.” In 1743, Mary wed landowner Griffin Stith and although the couple moved to the Eastern Shore of Virginia, they maintained ties to Williamsburg. Mary was buried at Williamsburg’s Bruton Parish Church in 1784.
William Dering’s portrait of Mary’s mother-in-law, Elizabeth Buckner Stith, is his only known signed work and the basis of other attributions to him. In addition to painting, Dering taught drawing and dancing. He owned and lived in the Thomas Everard House on Palace Green from 1742 to 1749, and likely kept his studio there as well.
1606-1615 (possibly)
Possibly 1700-1750
1815 probably
Probably 1764-1768
1800-1801 (possibly)
