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Elizabeth Beltzhoover Mason
Gilbert Stuartc. 1803–5
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
Stuart introduced into American art a painting technique based on spontaneous, yet strategically placed brushstrokes and layers of subtle, translucent paint that presents sitters as if bathed in mist. Commissioned five years after her marriage, this painting of Elizabeth Beltzhoover Mason (1781–1836) declares her stylishness by associating her with Stuart's fashionable manner. The portrait adapts to a small format the accessories of column and drapery traditionally associated with larger paintings, creating an effect of both intimacy and grandeur.
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Details
- Title: Elizabeth Beltzhoover Mason
- Creator: Gilbert Stuart (American, 1755–1828)
- Date Created: c. 1803–5
- Physical Dimensions: Framed: 90 x 78 x 8 cm (35 7/16 x 30 11/16 x 3 1/8 in.); Unframed: 73.8 x 61 cm (29 1/16 x 24 in.)
- Provenance: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio, (Frank W. Bayley, Boston, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art), Louisa Mason Terry [1844-1921], Washington, DC, consigned to Frank W. Bayley for sale1, Margaret Augusta Cowan Mason [1821-1899], Hagerstown, MD, by descent to her daughter, Louisa Mason Terry1, Judge John Thomson Mason, Jr. [1815-1873], Hagerstown, MD, by descent to his wife, Margaret Augusta Cowan Mason, Elizabeth Beltzhoover Mason [1781-1836] and John Thomson Mason [1765-1824], Montpelier, Clear Spring, MD, by descent to their son, Judge John Thomson Mason, Jr.
- Type: Painting
- Rights: CC0
- External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/1921.428
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Fun Fact: Stuart also painted a portrait of George Washington, now immortalized on the dollar bill.
- Department: American Painting and Sculpture
- Culture: America, 19th century
- Credit Line: Gift from J. H. Wade
- Collection: American - Painting
- Accession Number: 1921.428
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