Daughter of William Page (Probably Mary Page)
Scholars have dated this work on stylistic grounds to the early 1840s, hence, it probably depicts Page's second daughter, Mary (b. 1836), and not the younger Emma (b. 1839). The three girls were abandoned by their mother, Lavinia Twibill, and lived with their eccentric father only sporadically, as he was preoccupied by his romantic artistic visions. At seventeen, Mary traveled with her sisters to Italy, where they lived with their father and his second wife. By 1860 she had married Page's disciple, the artist Virgil Williams (1830–1886), and two years later the couple returned to the United States. Williams died in California in 1886, however information on Mary Page's later life and death is unavailable. Like its companion piece (25.85.2), the work evidences Page's subtle coloristic talents, which are especially notable in the flesh. The refreshing lack of sentiment makes the painting an unconventional example of nineteenth-century child portraiture, rich with disarming beauty and poignance.
Artwork Details
- Title: Daughter of William Page (Probably Mary Page)
- Artist: William Page (American, Albany, New York 1811–1885 Staten Island, New York)
- Date: ca. 1840
- Culture: American
- Medium: Oil on canvas
- Dimensions: Oval: 14 x 12 in. (35.6 x 30.5 cm)
- Credit Line: Bequest of Emma A. Fortuna, 1925
- Object Number: 25.85.1
- Curatorial Department: The American Wing
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William Page (American, Albany, New York 1811–1885 Staten Island, New York)
William Page (American, Albany, New York 1811–1885 Staten Island, New York)
ca. 1837–38
William Langson Lathrop (American, Warren, Illinois 1859–1938 Montauk, New York)
1897
Thomas Hovenden (American (born Ireland), Dunmanway 1840–1895 Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania)
1892–94
James Hamilton (American (born Ireland), Entrien 1819–1878 San Francisco, California)
1856
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