John Thomas Peele Oil Painting "Girl and Kitten"

Item Details

John Thomas Peele (England, 1822-1897)
Girl and Kitten, 1853
Oil on canvas
Signed to the lower right
English label with abbreviated biography to the verso

An oil painting on canvas by listed artist John Thomas Peele (England, 1822-1897), reportedly titled Girl and Kitten, 1853. The work depicts a young girl seated on a large stone, cuddling her pet cat. The work is signed and dated to the lower corner. It is presented in a period gilt frame with acorn and oak leaf motifs.

Peele purportedly painted two versions of the portrait in the same year; one titled The Pet, housed at the National Academy of Design, and one titled Girl and Kitten, exhibited in London in 1854. It is believed that the painting presented is the second version, Girl and Kitten. The two works are nearly identical with small differences and alternate backgrounds.

John Thomas Peele moved to America at a young age, settled in New York, and joined the ranks of the genre painters that were popularized during the middle of the 19th century, such as John George Brown (American, 1831-1913). This example depicts a girl in a landscape setting, with a number of additional props, such as a cat, a water jug and luscious drapery.

Provenance
no provenance could be established at this time

References
David B. Dearinger, Paintings & Sculpture at the Nat. Academy of Design, Vol. 1: 1826-1925, 2004

New York Historical Society, National Academy of Design Exhibition Records 1826 – 1860, 1943

Condition

- canvas has been fully relined; visible craquelure throughout painting; slight toning to paint; small spots of inpainting to the right side of composition; dust and accretions to composition and frame; cracks, scratches, and chipping to frame; dust pockets to the verso; minor foxing to verso of canvas.

Dimensions

- frame measures; image measures 26" W x 33" H.

Item #

18ATL020-373