Portrait of Harriet Brown

Sheldon Peck

c. 1845

Oil on panel

Minneapolis Institute of Art

A woman with a white bonnet and lace collar sits with a red book on a table to her left. She wears a black dress and her hands are resting in her lap. This portrait reveals a serious woman whose modest dress is devoid of frivolous accessories. Her only finery is a delicately woven and embroidered shawl. Her arm rests on a Bible, suggesting that her reserved demeanor reflects a religious disposition. Sheldon Peck embarked on a career in painting in his native Vermont. How he acquired his artistic skill is not known, but he likely was self-taught. He traveled around the Midwest in search of clients to paint, most of whom were average men and women who sought an affordable means of documenting their lives. Gallery G304 Gift of Samuel D. and Patricia N. McCullough