Mrs. Noah Smith and Her Children

The painting presents Chloe Burrall Smith, elegantly dressed, embracing her youngest daughter. Her four older children are arranged before a landscape, each holding an object. Notably, Daniel, positioned second from the left, holds a "Map of the World."

This attribute symbolizes the family's commitment to education and their broader aspirations, reflecting a desire for intellectual engagement and perhaps a connection to global affairs in post-Revolutionary America.

Ralph Earl developed a distinctive approach to portraiture, informed by his earlier training in England under Benjamin West during his Loyalist exile. Upon returning to America, he adapted a deliberately simplified and linear style, which resonated with the aesthetic preferences of his rural New England clientele. This particular work showcases his capacity for grand compositions, making it his most expansive and complex family portrait.

Commissioned during Ralph Earl's itinerant period in New England, this portrait remained with the Smith family for over 150 years, descending through Eliza Smith's lineage. For much of its history, the original canvas was largely unknown, with its existence primarily documented through a late-nineteenth-century copy. The painting entered public view after its sale in 1958 and subsequent exhibition, eventually being gifted to its current institution.