Edwin Whitefield

View of Providence, Rhode Island

Maker

Edwin Whitefield (American, 1816-1892)

Title

View of Providence, Rhode Island

Year

ca. 1850

Medium

Graphite and wash on board

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Graphite and wash on board

Materials

graphite

Supports

wove paper

Dimensions

Panel: 45.7 cm (18 inches) (width)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

In pencil on recto: "/20" TLC; "Port of Providence R.I." LLC. In pencil and ink on verso of mount, TRC: "VG-30661 AFA 76.1.2621 / 7 1/2 x 12 1/4 / APG2749.1"

Marks: Embossed stamp in TLC: "Reynold's Bristolboard"

Label: Four labels on verso of mount: museum/exhibition labels from Vase Galleries of Boston (center), Museum of Fine Arts Boston (TRC), The America Federation of Arts (R). Label in LRC reads: "Do not hang / in direct sunlight / or over / heating vent"

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Susan R. and Theodore E. Stebbins in honor of Virginia Lynch

Object Number

2000.78

Type

Drawings and Watercolors

Exhibition History

Landscape and Leisure

19th-Century American Drawings from the Collection

Mar 13, 2015 – Jul 19, 2015

Label copy

Edwin Whitefield traveled throughout North America making topographical views of cities, many of which he published in 1855. This drawing is a bird’s-eye view from College Hill of Providence’s downtown riverfront. Whitefield privileged legibility and precision over accuracy; his general view from a high vantage point did not stop him from rendering façades, especially those of important landmarks, in great detail. Whitefield’s use of graphite with a color wash aligns with the lithographs made for the series, which were printed in black with green highlights.

Image use

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This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Edwin Whitefield (American, 1816-1892)

View of Providence, Rhode Island, ca. 1850

Graphite and wash on board

Panel: 45.7 cm (18 inches) (width)

Gift of Susan R. and Theodore E. Stebbins in honor of Virginia Lynch 2000.78

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