Elizabeth Denison
Historical Context
The Denison Limner's portrait of Elizabeth Denison, painted around 1790, is attributed to an anonymous artist (probably Joseph Steward) who painted several members of the Denison family of Stonington, Connecticut. These limner portraits represent the American folk art tradition at its most refined, combining naive charm with genuine artistic ambition. The Denison family commissions provide a rare opportunity to study a single anonymous artist's approach to multiple related sitters.
Technical Analysis
The limner's oil-on-canvas technique features the flat, decorative approach characteristic of American folk portraiture. The sitter is rendered with careful attention to facial features and costume details, while the overall treatment maintains the two-dimensional, pattern-like quality that defines the limner tradition.
Provenance
Descended from Nathaniel and Elizabeth Denison [1773-1849] Ledyard, Stonington, Connecticut;[1] their son, William Ledyard; his widow, Fanny Worthington Ledyard; Amelia Stuart Worthington; her son, Worthington Whitehouse; sold (?) to John Quinn [1870-1924], New York, by 12 December 1918.[2] Maude Wetmore, Newport, Rhode Island. (James St. Lawrence O'Toole). (M. Knoedler and Co., New York); sold 1947 to Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch; gift 1953 to NGA. [1] The provenance of this portrait suggests that its subject is Elizabeth Denison [1773-1849], the eldest child of Captain Elisha Denison and Elizabeth Noyes Denison. In 1793 the younger Elizabeth married Nathaniel Ledyard, in whose family the portrait descended. [2] Letter dated 12 December 1918 from Worthington Whitehouse to John Quinn refers to "The portrait which you got from me..." (letter in NGA curatorial files).
