| |
Ammi Phillips (1788 - 1865)
Vicinity of Amenia, New York
1830 - 1835
Girl in Red Dress with Cat and Dog, considered Phillips's masterpiece, belongs to the artist's so-called Kent period from about 1829 to 1838, which is defined by the strong contrast of pale faces emerging like jewels from velvety dark backgrounds, heightened bloom in the cheeks, smooth -- almost enameled -- brushwork, a concentration on the faces of the sitters, and highly geometric treatment of the bodies. The Kent portraits mark a stunning departure from the luminous visions Phillips painted during the romantic years of the teens through the twenties. His mastery as a colorist, honed during those years, is rethought and applied in the new palette of the 1830s. The success of Phillips's essentially mathematical approach to mass, volume, and composition is dependent upon a precise and delicate balance of all the elements. This geometric structure and codified repetitions of format from canvas to canvas combine to create purposeful masterpieces that convey both a sense of individual clarity as well as cultural unity.
American Folk Art Museum, NYC
|
|
