Artwork
Tea Rusk and Brick House
Tea Rusk and Brick House is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist William P. Chappel. It dates from 1874 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. William P.
- Accession no.
- 54.90.503
- Credit line
- The Edward W. C. Arnold Collection of New York Prints, Maps, and Pictures, Bequest of Edward W. C. Arnold, 1954
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Chappel in 1874, portrays a domestic interior in which a man and a woman are positioned within a house.
The painting titled Tea Rusk and Brick House, created by William P. Chappel in 1874, portrays a domestic interior in which a man and a woman are positioned within a house. The composition presents a domestic scene that reflects the everyday life of a middle-class household, using the simple setting of a brick house to underscore themes of domestic stability and social order. By situating the figures inside a defined architectural space, the work suggests a narrative of domestic routine and the social roles associated with gender at the time.
Technique & Style
Tea Rusk and Brick House is an 1874 oil painting executed on slate paper, a support noted in the work's catalog entry. The Metropolitan Museum of Art records the support dimensions as 23.2 × 15.2 cm, typical of the small-scale genre scenes Chappel produced. The medium's thin oil layer allows subtle tonal modulation, while the slate surface contributes a slightly absorbent ground that influences brush handling and edge definition.
The composition presents a modest interior with a house, a man, and a woman, rendered in a realistic yet understated style that emphasizes domestic quietude. Condition reports are not detailed in the available documentation.
History & Provenance
The work is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, where it is inventoried as Tea Rusk and Brick House. Dated to 1874, it measures 23.2 cm in height by 15.2 cm in width. The painting has not been recorded in major temporary exhibitions in the sources consulted.
Overview
William P. Chappel's "Tea Rusk and Brick House," created around 1874, is an oil painting on slate paper. This genre scene offers a glimpse into daily life in 1870s New York, depicting a modest brick dwelling and its inhabitants. The artwork is notable for its portrayal of ordinary moments and its distinctive visual qualities derived from the chosen medium.
Context
This painting stands as one of the few surviving visual records of everyday life in New York during the 1870s. Unlike more formal or idealized depictions, "Tea Rusk and Brick House" focuses on the mundane, providing insights into the unadorned realities of the era. Its survival offers a valuable window into the social fabric and architectural environment of a specific moment in American urban history.
Artist & collection
