Thomas Cole
Head of a Roman Woman, from Nature
1832
Physical Qualities
Oil on canvas, Framed: 33 3/4 x 29 1/8 x 2 1/4 in. (85.7 x 74 x 5.7 cm) Unframed: 24 5/8 x 20 1/8 in. (62.5 x 51.1 cm) Sight: 23 7/8 x 19 1/2 in. (60.6 x 49.5 cm)
Credit Line
Purchased as the gift of Stiles Tuttle Colwill, Lutherville, Maryland, in Memory of his Mother, Marion Tuttle Colwill
Object Number
1992.219
Known primarily for landscapes, Thomas Cole seldom executed figure studies. However, in 1832, during his first visit to Italy, Cole is said to have chosen this unusual viewpoint to depict a popular Roman model, since all his artist friends were portraying her from the front. During that same Italian trip, Cole painted A Wild Scene, hanging nearby.
Wendy A. Cooper, BMA, "Classical Taste in America 1800-1840," 6/27-9/26/96, p. 290 (not ill.); circulated to Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, NC, and Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX.
"National Academy of Design Exhibition Record 1826-1860," Vol. I, A-L, NY: The New-York Historical Society, 1943, p. 88, no. 122.
BMA Today, "In the Spotlight: Recent Accession", December 1993 - January 1994
Inscribed: None.
