Lilly Martin Spencer (American, born England, 1822–1902). <em>Kiss Me and You'll Kiss the 'Lasses</em>, 1856. Oil on canvas, 29 15/16 x 24 15/16 in. (76 x 63.3 cm). Brooklyn Museum, A. Augustus Healy Fund, 70.26 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 70.26_PS20.jpg)

Lilly Martin Spencer (American, born England, 1822–1902). Kiss Me and You'll Kiss the 'Lasses, 1856. Oil on canvas, 29 15/16 x 24 15/16 in. (76 x 63.3 cm). Brooklyn Museum, A. Augustus Healy Fund, 70.26 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 70.26_PS20.jpg)

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What is she cooking? Is she a servant?

In this scene, the woman is not a servant, but the lady of the house. We can guess her status from her clothing and jewelry. She is making preserves (jam, for example) from all the fruits on the table, and she has molasses in her spoon.

As you can see described in the label, the woman pictured here turns from her work to engage an unseen person in a playful flirtation. As the title suggests, if the interloper tries to kiss her, he will receive a dousing of molasses (a brown syrup that's a by-product of refined sugar) from the spoon in her hand. It was a time when a woman's place was definitely in the home, and Spencer's art usually showed idealized or humorous domestic scenes. Ironically, her own life was different! Spencer was unusual for her time: she was the principal breadwinner of the family, making a living as a professional artist.

I love the security this figure displays.

Yes! Do you get the meaning of the title? "Kiss Me and You'll Kiss the 'Lasses"?

I'm not sure. The spoon with molasses on it?

Yes! If the person she's talking to attempts to kiss her, he'll get a big hot spoon of molasses in his face.

Oh! I thought she had leftover molasses on her lips.

I'm sure the man in question would prefer that. Instead, he's getting a fair warning.

Haha. I love it!

This painting is by a female artist, as are many in this gallery. I like that it is a comment on portraiture in general. The subject refuses to be objectifed! It's as if she's saying, "Yes ,I'm a woman and I'm attractive, but I have more important things going on here."

Yeah exactly. Thanks for everything! It was fun chatting with you.

What is the green fruit on the right side of this painting?

There are several kinds of fruit on the table, but I believe the green ones are gooseberries. They actually sell these at farmer's markets around NYC. I just had some for the first time last weekend!

The other two fruits you may have recognized as cherries and raspberries. They refer to the high summer season when this scene takes place.

Kiss Me and You'll Kiss the 'Lasses

Lilly Martin Spencer

American Art

On View: American Art Galleries, 5th Floor, Radical Care

As the title implies, this bold young woman promises a dose of molasses to the person advancing to kiss her while she makes fruit preserves. The painting’s subject was as uncommon at the time as its independent female artist.

Lilly Martin Spencer was a wife and mother as well as a professional painter and family breadwinner. Her great accomplishment was in representing homemakers who combined ideal domesticity and a more liberated, playful self-assertion. This spirited figure also acted as the artist’s own voice in a male-dominated art world.

ARTIST Lilly Martin Spencer, American, born England, 1822–1902

MEDIUM Oil on canvas

DATES 1856

DIMENSIONS 29 15/16 x 24 15/16 in. (76 x 63.3 cm) frame: 43 3/4 x 38 3/4 x 4 in. (111.1 x 98.4 x 10.2 cm) (show scale)

SIGNATURE Signed lower right :"Lilly M. Spencer / 1856"

COLLECTIONS American Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 70.26

CREDIT LINE A. Augustus Healy Fund

PROVENANCE 1856, commissioned from the artist by the Cosmopolitan Art Association, New York, NY; by 1857, acquired by E. A. Carman of Newark, NJ; between 1857 and 1970, provenance not yet documented; by March 3, 1970, acquired by Bernard Danenberg Galleries, New York; April 15, 1970, purchased from Bernard Danenberg Galleries by the Brooklyn Museum.

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EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in American Art Galleries, 5th Floor, Radical Care

CAPTION Lilly Martin Spencer (American, born England, 1822–1902). Kiss Me and You'll Kiss the 'Lasses, 1856. Oil on canvas, 29 15/16 x 24 15/16 in. (76 x 63.3 cm). Brooklyn Museum, A. Augustus Healy Fund, 70.26 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 70.26_PS20.jpg)

IMAGE overall, Paula Abreu Pita, 70.26_PS20.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2024

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