Artwork
Hide and Seek
Hide and Seek is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist James Jacques Joseph Tissot. It dates from 1877 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:lower right near border of carpet: J.J.Tissot
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The scene captures a moment of playful secrecy, evoking the fleeting tension and anticipation inherent in childhood games of hide and seek.
Hide and Seek depicts a young girl concealed within a dimly lit interior, her presence suggested only by the edge of her dress and a faint glimpse of her face, while a boy peers over a doorway, poised to discover her. The scene captures a moment of playful secrecy, evoking the fleeting tension and anticipation inherent in childhood games of hide and seek. This intimate composition reflects Tissot's interest in everyday domestic moments and the psychological nuance of private spaces, where the act of hiding becomes a metaphor for vulnerability and the desire for privacy within shared environments.
Technique & Style
Hide and Seek is painted in oil on wood panel using fine, smooth brushwork that captures the crisp daylight and translucent shadows of an interior scene.
The composition is rigorously structured around a shallow, stage-like space defined by a centrally placed doorway, through which light enters and models the figures’ faces and costumes. Figures are rendered with precise contours and a muted palette of greens, whites, and browns, conveying the quiet, suspended moment of the game. Handling is meticulous, with careful attention to the play of light on satin, lace, and polished surfaces, reflecting Tissot’s academic training and attention to contemporary fashionable life.
History & Provenance
James Tissot created the oil-on-wood painting Hide and Seek in 1877. The work's ownership history begins with J.R. Ormrod of Moreton-in-Marsh, who held the piece in 1956 alongside dealers M. Newman Ltd. and P. Polak Ltd. It was subsequently sold at Christie, Manson & Woods in London on February 22, 1957, before passing through the Fine Art Society and being auctioned at Sotheby's on March 20, 1963.
The painting remained in the possession of Mrs. C. Behr in London until at least 1967, after which it was owned by Julian Spiro. Following a sale at Christie, Manson & Woods on October 15, 1976, the work entered the Herman Shickman Gallery in New York. It was finally acquired by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., on May 24, 1978.
The work is held by the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., where it carries accession number 1978.47.2.
Its exhibition history includes display at the National Gallery of Art by 1978, following its acquisition from Herman Shickman Gallery, New York, in May 1978.
Overview
James Jacques Joseph Tissot painted Hide and Seek around 1877 using oil on wood. The work presents an interior domestic scene where children are engaged in a game of hide‑and‑seek, set within an opulently furnished room that conveys the comforts of a well‑appointed middle‑class household of the period.
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