Summer

Object Details

Date
1903
Artist
Kate Clifton Osgood Holmes, born Ellsworth, ME 1858-died Washington, DC 1925
Luce Center Label
In Summer a woman retreats to a shadowed interior to play quietly on her guitar. White curtains and the figure’s linen gown glow in the light from the window, suggesting the heat of the afternoon outside. Such scenes of solitary women playing music, reading books, or writing letters expressed an idea of domestic peace and refinement that became more desirable as the Gilded Age grew more ambitious and frenetic. The painting can also be seen as an emblem of Kate Holmes’s artistic talents and efforts: She was married to a prominent archaeologist, but made a name for herself in the Washington art world as a respected painter and teacher.
Topic
Figure female\full length
Allegory\season\summer
Performing arts\music\guitar
See more items in
Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection
Department
Painting and Sculpture
On View
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 3rd Floor, 15B
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 3rd Floor
Credit Line
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Dr. and Mrs. William Henry Holmes
Data Source
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Object number
1930.12.70
Type
Painting
Restrictions & Rights
CC0
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
19 5/8 x 14 5/8 in. (49.8 x 37.2 cm)
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/vk7fe4b795c-0d72-4129-a8da-201fbd393880
Record ID
saam_1930.12.70