Mother and Child (c.1885). Francis Coates Jones (American, 1857-1932). Oil on canvas. Terra Foundati
Mother and Child (c.1885). Francis Coates Jones (American, 1857-1932). Oil on canvas. Terra Foundation for American Art.Illustrates the most important function of womanhood, according to the 19th-century ideal: the raising and instructing of children. A well-dressed mother and daughter sit in adjacent chairs, their attention fixed on a large, thin book, possibly a children’s picture-book, held upright in the child’s lap. The young reader is dwarfed by her high-backed chair, suggesting the development yet ahead for her. Soft light from above plays over such luxurious furnishings as richly patterned wallpaper and an oriental rug, evidence of the wealth that affords the mother leisure to devote to her daughter’s instruction. A small table in the background supports a sewing box and a crystal vase of full white roses, perhaps symbolizing the complementary feminine ideals of domesticity and moral purity. -- source link
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