Conversation Piece

Lilly Martin Spencer

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Born in England, Spencer immigrated to the United States in 1830. She began her career in Cincinnati, painting portraits and literary subjects, but after moving to New York in 1848, she struggled to find patrons for these works and soon turned her attention to painting scenes of domestic life. Working in a male-dominated art world, Spencer carved out space for herself by focusing on depictions of familial bliss, often drawing on her own experiences as a wife and mother. She also used her husband and children as models, including in this work, which is set in her family’s well-appointed parlor.

The American Wing

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The American Wing's ever-evolving collection comprises some 20,000 works of art by African American, Euro American, Latin American, and Native American men and women. Ranging from the colonial to early-modern periods, the holdings include painting, sculpture, works on paper, and decorative arts—including furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, silver, metalwork, jewelry, basketry, quill and bead embroidery—as well as historical interiors and architectural fragments.

Metropolitan Museum of Art