Painting
- Title:
- Sarah Jane Copps Fellows
- Object Name:
- Painting
- Date:
- 1840-1850
- Material:
- Paint
Canvas
Wood - Dimensions:
- H-1.3 W-4.75 D-0.25 inches
- Description:
- Portrait Painting of Sarah Jane Copps Fellows (1809-1892), wife of Ignatius Fellows; attributed to Samuel P. Howes. The Fellows family lived in Lowell, MA, from 1833 to 1843, where Samuel Howes worked as an artist. Oil on canvas; framed. Sitter wears a black dress, white collar, hanging earrings. Holding a gold watch. Sarah Jane Copps Fellows (1809-1892) was born in Hopkinton, and married Ignatius Fellows in Hopkinton in 1830. Note the watch and jewelry she has worn for her portrait sitting. Her broach, which shows a mourning emblem, may have been for the infant she lost. The gold pocket watch tucked into her waist ribbon was a status symbol for women.
- Provenance:
- Samuel P.Howes (1806-1881) was born in Massachusetts and by 1829 was listed in various directories as a "painter" or "portrait painter". Howes visited Lowell, MA in 1835 and planned to stay for only a few days, but ended up staying in Lowell for the rest of his life. Howes moved to Lowell at a time when demand for painted portraits was beginning to decline after the invention of the daguerreotype; however, there was still demand for portraits in this fast growing industrial area. For the artist, Lowell offered a fast growing, prospective clientele without the portrait competition of a large city. The years from 1835 to 1845 were Howes most productive years as a portrait painter. Full sized portraits were offered for ten to thirty-five dollars, depending on size. After 1845, he began listing himself as a "daguerreotypist and portrait painter" in the city directories.
- Subjects:
- Portrait paintings, Portraits, Oil paintings
- Item Number:
- 1983.1102
- Accession Number:
- 1983.1102
- Type of Material:
- Objects
- Copyright Statement:
- For information regarding copyright, permissions, and reproductions contact the Hopkinton Historical Society
- Credit Line:
- Gift of the Heirs of W. F. Fellows
- Participating Organization:
- Hopkinton Historical Society
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