The artwork titled “Mrs. Henry Lewis (Elizabeth Morton Woodson)” is an oil painting on canvas created by the artist George Caleb Bingham. It is a portrait that belongs to the art movements of Romanticism and Naïve Art (Primitivism). This piece is housed in the Saint Louis Art Museum in St. Louis, Missouri, US.
In the artwork, the subject, Mrs. Henry Lewis, née Elizabeth Morton Woodson, is depicted with a serious and contemplative expression. She is adorned in period clothing, inclusive of a bonnet with delicate white lace trim and a modest, dark-colored dress featuring a shawl with fine patterns. The background is kept simple and dark, which focuses the viewer’s attention firmly on Mrs. Lewis’s face, capturing the essence of her character and the era’s sensibilities. The painting exhibits a sense of intimacy and realism, aligning with the stylistic elements of both Romanticism’s emotional expressiveness and Naïve Art’s unembellished, straightforward approach.
