Portraits Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
PA.123 |
Title |
Elizabeth Vanderhorst Moore |
Artist |
Theus, Jeremiah, 1719-1774 |
Date |
1735 circa |
Description |
Elizabeth Vanderhorst Moore (Mrs. John Moore) (1737-1790), whose family has deep roots in South Carolina, was the mother of Rachel Moore Allston (Mrs. Henry Collins Flagg) and grandmother of artist Washington Allston. Portrait. Adult standing female subject in Colonial dress,waist length view, facing right three-quarter turn. Subject has brown hair and eyes and is wearing a double strand pearl choker and white and green flowers in her hair. In her left hand she holds an apple blossom. The dress, quite fashionable for the period, is blue satin with white trim, with a long waist coming to a point in the front. The dress is worn over a typical tightly corseted figure. Here the decolletage of her dress is squared instead of the rounded type also worn at the time. The neckline is softened with a border of chemise appearing above the bodice and elbow-length sleeves. Subject's dress fastens in the front, embellished with pearled bow knots, allowing a bit more chemise to peep through. The plain background of the setting is brown and tan. (AAP; Warwick 173-75) |
Object Name |
Painting |
Medium |
Oil Paint |
Material |
Canvas |
Dimensions |
H-76.2 W-63.5 cm |
Credit line |
The Gladys Moore Vanderbilt Széchényi Memorial Collection |
Provenance |
1992 - The Gladys Moore Vanderbilt Széchényi Memorial Collection |
Additional Inscriptions and Marks |
Plaque: "Mrs. Vanderhorst Moore of Mooreland near Charleston, S.C. - Painted by Thearec in 1735. This picture shows a sword thurst in the eye given by a British Soldier in the Revolutionary War" |
Inscription Location |
On back of frame |
Inscriptions and Marks |
Gold Plaque: Thearec 1735 |
Collection |
Painting |
People |
Szechenyi, Gladys Vanderbilt, Countess, 1887-1965 Hatton, Christopher Stormont Finch Earl of Winchilsea and Nottingham The Honorable Robin Finch Hatton Theus, Jeremiah, 1719-1774 Moore, Elizabeth Vanderhorst, 1737-1790 |
Notes |
Formerly #147. Theüs, like many itinerant painters, had pre-painted canvases ready in his studio from which a patron could choose his or her favorite pose. This might explains the marked difference in the flesh tones of Mrs. Moore's head and neck. It seems likely the body and costume were painted first, with her face added later. Theüs charm as a portrait painter rests on his ability to depict cheerful, glamorously attired sitters. His technique was one of smooth surfaces and precise handling of detail, with brush strokes carefully blended. Closely observed reflections and shadows were his favorite way to enliven a surface. Mrs. Moore's pose was borrowed from an early mezzotint by Smith called The Duchess of Marlborough after the London painter Kneller. The date of the work is possibly 1755, the time of her marriage to John Moore or 1762, the date of the portrait of her brother, Elias or some time shortly before her marriage. This painting is part of a collection of eight paintings given to the Redwood Library by descendents of Countess László Sechényi, a daughter of Cornelius Vanderbilt (1843-1899). It was the wish of Countess Sechényi that the portraits remain together as a group in Newport. Since the family enjoyed a long association with the Redwood Library and a majority of the people depicted in the paintings are part of the history of Newport, it was felt that the Library was the appropriate repository for the portraits. |
Related Publications |
Powell (67-71) ; 1926 "Genealogical Notes on the Founding of New England; my ancestors part in that undertaking" by Flagg (142); 1953 "Jeremiah Theüs - Colonial Artist of Charles Town" by Middleton (93); 1986 "The Flagg Family: An Artistic Legacy and the Provenance of a Collection" by Powell (68) |