School of George Engleheart, Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1795

Chicago:

Aimee Marcereau DeGalan, “School of George Engleheart, Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1795,” catalogue entry in Aimee Marcereau DeGalan, Blythe Sobol, and Maggie Keenan, The Starr Collection of Portrait Miniatures, 1500–1850: The Collections of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, vol. 2, ed. Aimee Marcereau DeGalan (Kansas City, MO: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2024), https://doi.org/10.37764/8322.5.1389.

MLA:

Marcereau DeGalan, Aimee. “School of George Engleheart, Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1795,” catalogue entry. Aimee Marcereau DeGalan, Blythe Sobol, and Maggie Keenan. The Starr Collection of Portrait Miniatures, 1500–1850: The Collections of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, edited by Aimee Marcereau DeGalan, vol. 2, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2024. doi: 10.37764/8322.5.1389.

This miniature of an unknown woman, formerly attributed to George Engleheart (1750–1829), presents an intriguing puzzle, offering speculation about its potential origins and possible later additions. While certain aspects, particularly the facial features and the modulated sky background, suggest the work of Engleheart, the overall execution lacks the precision and definition expected of his work.¹

Notably, the loop of hair at the sitter’s right, below her ear, is inconsistent with period hairstyles and suggests a later addition. This anomaly raises questions about the painting’s authenticity and integrity. The possibility of unfinished elements or later modifications, possibly undertaken in the second half of the nineteenth century, further complicates questions of its attribution. It is conceivable that a member of the owner’s family who possessed watercolor skills adapted the hairstyle to conform to trends of the 1860s or 1870s, altering the original composition.²

The absence of Engleheart’s customary hallmarks in this late phase of his work, such as the presence of his signature cursive “E,” adds to the uncertainty surrounding the miniature’s level of completion.³ Additionally, the lack of Engleheart’s Hartford Street address, typically found on the reverse of his miniatures, casts doubt on its attribution. We know that other miniaturists of the time waited to sign works until they were complete and the bill paid.⁴ Is that what happened here? Was this miniature unfinished or not paid for?⁵

Despite these uncertainties, the portrait offers valuable insight into the portraiture conventions of the time, including the popularity of Engleheart and his techniques, hinting at its potential as an unfinished or experimental work by an unknown hand close to George Engleheart.

Notes

1. As communicated to the author by Stephen Lloyd during his October 2023 visit. Notes in NAMA curatorial files.

2. Lloyd visit, October 2023. Notes in NAMA curatorial files.

3. Although Engleheart did not sign all of his miniatures, his cursive “E” signature regularly appeared during this period of his career. See Carmela Arturi and Frederick Roger Phillips, George Engleheart and His Nephew John Cox Dillman Engleheart (Hampshire: Portrait Miniature Club, 2016), 73.

4. This was the practice of Richard Cosway (1742–1821), for instance, as communicated to the author by Lloyd during his October 2023 visit. Notes in NAMA curatorial files.

5. Frequently the artist’s nephew, John Cox Dillman Engleheart (1784–1862), would finish or provide later copies of his uncle’s miniatures; however, he would have been too young to have had a hand in the present miniature. See Portrait of a Naval Officer, Possibly Rear Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, 1802, also in the Starr Collection.

Mr. John W. (1905–2000) and Mrs. Martha Jane (1906–2011) Starr, Kansas City, MO, by 1958;

Their gift to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1958.

Ross E. Taggart, The Starr Collection of Miniatures in the William Rockhill Nelson Gallery (Kansas City, MO: Nelson Gallery-Atkins Museum, 1971), no. 76, p. 28, (repro.), as Unknown Lady.