Artist:

William Henry Rinehart, born Union Bridge, MD 1825-died Rome, Italy 1874  Search this

Sitter:

Jr. Henry Elliott Johnston  Search this

Medium:

marble

Dimensions:

42 1/2 x 15 1/4 x 13 3/8 in. (108.0 x 38.7 x 34.0 cm.)

Type:

Sculpture

Date:

1874

Luce Center Label:

In 1872, William Henry Rinehart visited Baltimore, where the Johnston family commissioned him to create four portraits, including marble busts of Henry Elliott Johnston and his wife, Harriet Lane Johnston, and full-length sculptures of their two children posing as Cupid. The statues of Henry Jr., age two, and James, age five, are identical except for the faces, and Rinehart only needed to make clay models of the boys’ heads before returning to his studio in Rome. This allowed him more time to sculpt the boys’ bodies from live models in his studio. Here, the young Henry appears unaware of his surroundings as he concentrates on stringing his bow. This creates a natural, unself-conscious sculpture that contrasts with the sentimental images of Cupid popular in Victorian society.

Topic:

Mythology\classical\Cupid  Search this

Figure male\nude  Search this

Figure male\full length  Search this

Portrait male\child  Search this

Credit Line:

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Harriet Lane Johnston

Object number:

1906.9.16

Restrictions & Rights:

CC0

See more items in:

Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection

Department:

Painting and Sculpture

Data Source:

Smithsonian American Art Museum

GUID:

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/vk7a1c2e019-34b1-48f6-ab67-2b9f73a7501d

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:saam_1906.9.16