Thomas Abthorpe Cooper (1776-1849) - Chester Harding

Friends of American Art Collection; Goodman Fund

"Thomas Abthorpe Cooper (1776-1849)" by Chester Harding (c. 1822) Oil on canvas.

Commentary

"Thomas Abthorpe Cooper (1776-1849)" by Chester Harding (c. 1822) invites a close look at how form and feeling work together. Its painted surface guides your eye through color, brushwork, and contrast rathe r than through narrative alone. Themes to notice include painting. This piece is held in the source collection's Arts of the Americas collection. Chester Harding is the artist behind this work. A useful anchor for reading the piece: Chester Harding American, 1792–1866. The work is cataloged within a United States cultural context. How to look at this work: It is cataloged as painting, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (Oil on canvas) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (96.8 × 84.1 cm (30 1/4 × 25 5/16 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include painting. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/33552

Sources: Art Institute of Chicago; Art Institute of Chicago / Public Records; Art Institute of Chicago Collection Data