Abbott H. Thayer (American, 1849–1921). <em>The Sisters</em>, 1884. Oil on canvas, 54 5/16 x 36 1/4 in. (138 x 92.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Bequest of Bessie G. Stillman, 35.1068 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1068_PS20.jpg)

Abbott H. Thayer (American, 1849–1921). The Sisters, 1884. Oil on canvas, 54 5/16 x 36 1/4 in. (138 x 92.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Bequest of Bessie G. Stillman, 35.1068 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1068_PS20.jpg)

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Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

What can you tell me about this?

Bessie and Clara Stillman reportedly posed up to thirty times for Thayer to paint this portrait. They look very much alike (as sisters often do!) but their facial expressions and their gestures give us hints about their different personalities.

Both Bessie and Clara Stillman were artists in their own right, as well. Bessie Stillman would become known for her watercolors, while Clara Stillman painted landscapes. Thayer was known for his idealized depictions of women, and this is a good example!

How did the sisters feel about the painting?

Thayer said that they posed for him 30 times for this painting!

Thayer's biographer said that he went up to view this portrait in an exhibition after Thayer's death, and saw two "elderly women" also looking at it. They turned out to be the Stillman sisters, and he could see the resemblance even decades later!

Thanks I appreciate your help and scholarship.

You're welcome!

Can you tell me about the subjects?

The women in Thayer's painting are Clara Frances Stillman and Bessie Gray Stillman. They were sisters of a financier who was an associate of the artist.

These women posed often for Thayer in 1883 and Clara mentioned the sittings in her diaries, so we have some good firsthand reports about the work! Clara was older than Bessie and Bessie left the painting to this museum in 1935.

Thanks.

You're welcome!

I'm interested in the history of the repair work on this painting.

I don't have a full report of the conservation on this painting immediately available, but I do know of a few factors to consider:

When a canvas like this get folded, like it looks like this one did, it damages the paint surface in a way that it cannot be repaired unless the old paint is entirely removed and the canvas is repainted. This sort of paint replacement is almost never done.

Conservators try to strike a balance between restoration and keeping as much of the original artwork intact as possible.

I see the fold line and definitely understand the repairs there. The fingers on the hips is what distracts me, especially since the other fingers are so subtly detailed.

I see what you're saying! That's actually original to the painting. It seems that Thayer himself struggled with that hand. I do know that this was a relatively casual painting that Thayer made of two of his students rather than a more elaborately finished commissioned work.

I would have never guessed, fascinating! And thank you.

You're welcome!

The Sisters

Abbott H. Thayer

American Art

On View: American Art Galleries, 5th Floor, Witness

The women in this portrait were Bessie (left) and Clara Stillman, the sisters of the powerful financier James Stillman.

Abbott Handerson Thayer’s biographer, Nelson C. White, recorded an anecdote about his own experience of viewing this painting at an exhibition in 1922: “I was looking at the picture when two elderly women came and stood before it. As I glanced from the canvas to their faces I suddenly realized that they were the subjects of the portrait. Thayer had rendered their character in their youth with such insight and feeling that the likenesses survived the modulations of age and easily identified them.”

ARTIST Abbott H. Thayer, American, 1849–1921

MEDIUM Oil on canvas

DATES 1884

DIMENSIONS 54 5/16 x 36 1/4 in. (138 x 92.1 cm) frame: 62 9/16 x 44 1/2 x 3 3/4 in. (158.9 x 113 x 9.5 cm) (show scale)

SIGNATURE Signed twice lower left: "A. H. Thayer. / A. H. Thayer"

COLLECTIONS American Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 35.1068

CREDIT LINE Bequest of Bessie G. Stillman

PROVENANCE Prior to 1935, acquired from the artist by Bessie Gray Stillman; January 1935, gift of Bessie Gray Stillman to the Brooklyn Museum.

Provenance FAQ

EXHIBITIONS

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

CAPTION Abbott H. Thayer (American, 1849–1921). The Sisters, 1884. Oil on canvas, 54 5/16 x 36 1/4 in. (138 x 92.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Bequest of Bessie G. Stillman, 35.1068 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1068_PS20.jpg)

IMAGE overall, 35.1068_PS20.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2024

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RIGHTS STATEMENT No known copyright restrictions

This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

RECORD COMPLETENESS

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Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

What can you tell me about this?

How did the sisters feel about the painting?

Thayer said that they posed for him 30 times for this painting!

Thanks I appreciate your help and scholarship.

You're welcome!

Can you tell me about the subjects?

The women in Thayer's painting are Clara Frances Stillman and Bessie Gray Stillman. They were sisters of a financier who was an associate of the artist.

Thanks.

You're welcome!

I'm interested in the history of the repair work on this painting.

I don't have a full report of the conservation on this painting immediately available, but I do know of a few factors to consider:

Conservators try to strike a balance between restoration and keeping as much of the original artwork intact as possible.

I see the fold line and definitely understand the repairs there. The fingers on the hips is what distracts me, especially since the other fingers are so subtly detailed.

I would have never guessed, fascinating! And thank you.

You're welcome!