Artwork
Anna Maria Cumpston
Anna Maria Cumpston is an oil painting by the American Folk Art artist Charles Peale Polk. It dates from 1790 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:center right, on pedestal: C. Polk
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The 1790 oil portrait by Charles Peale Polk presents Anna Maria Cumpston, a young woman from a Philadelphia family. The composition emphasizes her genteel status through fine dress and a restrained pose, typical of early American portraiture that celebrated familial lineage and social standing.
Technique & Style
6 cm in width, a substantial vertical format suited to a half- or three-quarter-length portrait composition.
Anna Maria Cumpston is an oil on canvas painting executed by Charles Peale Polk in 1790. The work measures 147 cm in height by 95.6 cm in width, a substantial vertical format suited to a half- or three-quarter-length portrait composition. Oil paint on canvas was the standard support for late eighteenth-century American portraiture, allowing for the blended modeling and layered glazes characteristic of the period's formal style.
The painting is held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., a 1953 gift from Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch.
History & Provenance
The portrait of Anna Maria Cumpston was painted by Charles Peale Polk in 1790. It was handled by New York dealer Victor Spark, who sold it to collectors Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch in 1948. The Garbisches gifted the painting to the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., in 1953, where it is inventoried as a 1790 oil on canvas measuring 147 cm in height and 95.6 cm in width.
Overview
Charles Peale Polk's oil on canvas painting, titled "Anna Maria Cumpston," was created around 1790. This portrait depicts Anna Maria Cumpston Williams, shown seated and directly engaging the viewer. The work exemplifies portraiture from the late 18th century, showcasing the artist's skill in rendering individual likeness and conveying a sense of presence through the subject's posture and gaze.
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