Davis, Chelsea: Annotated Bibliography, The Art Amateur. “Exhibition of the Academy of Design.”
Annotated Bibliography
The Art Amateur. “Exhibition of the Academy of Design.” The Art Amateur 4 (1881): 115-117.
This article published in The Art Amateur is a review of the Exhibition of the Academy of Design and includes a list of some of the works exhibited and a very short review of each. The author, who is unknown, lists some descriptive information of the works, but it is mostly a review based on the author’s opinions. Millet had two works exhibited at the Academy of Design. These works were his portrait of Miss Kate Field and Baby Worship. The author describes Baby Worship as a sincere genre and claims it to be better than his portrait. The information on both works is short and not very descriptive, but the article does provide some contemporary opinions and critiques on the two paintings by Millet.
For more details on the paintings, another source would be better.
Art and Progress. “Francis Davis Millet.” Art and Progress 3, no. 8 (1912): 624.
The author of this source is unknown. It is a short, one page memorial article on Millet after his death on the titanic. It was consulted to see if it included any information on Thesmophoria, which it did not. However, it did mention mural painting and his work as the Director of Decoration at the World’s Fair at Chicago. This source does not discuss any of Millet’s paintings, but does include some personal information on Millet. Other sources provide similar information with more detail so this source does not stand out as particularly useful.
Baltz, Trudy. “Pageantry and Mural Painting: Community Rituals in Allegorical Form.”
Winterthur Porifolio 15 (Autumn 1980): 211-228.
Baltz discusses the popularity of allegorical mural painting in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century America. She is concerned with understanding this growth in popularity during a period of industrialization and commercialism. Baltz examines this topic by looking at American pageantry. She lists explanations for the popularity of pageants and states that the rise in allegorical pageants occurred at the same time as the rise of allegorical mural painting. Baltz provides a comparison of both allegorical pageants and mural painting and discusses certain works and mural painters. The purpose of this article is to better understand the popularity of allegory in American pageants and mural painting in the late 19th century and early 20th century.
In her analysis of allegorical mural painting, Baltz briefly mentions Francis Davis Millet and his Thesmophoria. She states that the portraits included in Thesmophoria are based on contemporary young women rather than on idealized classical facial types. She explains that Millet used his family members and friends as the models for the painting. Baltz claims that the inclusion of contemporary figures made it easier for people to connect with the art. The article also mentions Millet’s Queen of the Feast within the same context.
Baltz’s article is reliable and it is clear she did a lot of research on her topic. Her source is useful when trying to understand the context behind Millet’s allegorical mural painting. It provides information on why allegorical subjects were popular and why Millet may have painted Thesmophoria the way he did by including recognizable, contemporary figures as his subjects.
Baxter, Sylvester. “Francis Davis Millet: An Appreciation of the Man.” Art and Progress 3 (July 1912): 635-642.
This article was written after Millet’s death and is a biography of his life written by Baxter. It provides details of Millet’s life, personality, relationships, and work. Baxter praises Millet’s work for the Columbian World’s Fair at Chicago and speaks of Millet’s impact specifically on decorative mural painting. Baxter claims that Millet’s fame will last mostly because of his great mural paintings. He discusses his murals for the Baltimore custom house, but does not discuss other mural paintings.
This source would be reliable and useful if one were searching for general biographical details of Millet’s life. However, the source does not discuss his paintings except for a sentence or two on the Baltimore decorations at the Baltimore custom house. For more in depth information of his paintings, other sources would be more useful. This source was consulted in hopes it would have information on Millet’s mural painting, Thesmophoria, which it did not.
Blashfield, Edwin Howland. “Frank D. Millet as Mural Painter.” Art and Progress 3 (July 1912):
648-652.
Blashfield discusses Millet’s career as a mural painter in this article. He first discusses Millet’s important contributions to the Columbian Exposition as the Director of Decoration. Millet filled the role perfectly and was extremely successful. Mural painting skyrocketed in popularity, especially after the Columbian Exposition and Millet himself became a mural painter. Blashfield talks about Millet’s appeal for and attitude towards decorative mural painting. The article mentions Millet’s mural work in the Baltimore Custom House and discusses his artistic style in mural painting.
Blashfield knew Millet personally and provides reliable information on Millet’s work as a mural painter. This article is a useful source with information on Millet’s time as the director of decoration at the Columbian Exposition, and Millet’s impact on mural painting. It includes an image of Thesmophoria, but does not actually talk about this work. This source would be useful in a broad search on mural painting, but does not provide any specific detail on Thesmophoria.
Caffin, Charles H. “The Beginning and Growth of Mural Painting in America.” The Bookman 28
(February 1909): 127-139.
As the title suggests, this article by Caffin discusses the history of American mural painting. He defines the mural as a decorative work that is an integral part of the architecture around it. He discusses for a time the important connection between mural painting, sculpture, and architecture, and the decorative purpose of mural painting.
Throughout the article, Caffin examines several important artists, such as John La Farge and John S. Sargent, who aided the development of mural painting in America. Caffin also names the World’s Fair at Chicago as a major influence for mural decoration. He mentions Millet a couple times in this article, but only briefly. He includes Millet in his list of artists who have created decorative mural works. He also mentions Millet’s Traverse des Sioux as an example of a mural painting based on fact without a lot of embellishment or allegory, which raises the question of whether or not it counts as a mural decoration.
Although this article only briefly mentions Millet and does not discuss
Thesmophoria, it does provide important information regarding mural painting, as well as
contemporary ideas of mural painting and its decorative purpose. Millet created many mural works, so Caffin ‘s discussion of mural painting in the early 1900s gives insight to the attitudes and trends of mural painting around the time Millet was producing his mural works. The mention of the World’s Fair at Chicago as a major influence for mural decoration is also significant because of Millet’s prominent role in the department of decorations of the fair. This fact may provide further understanding of Millet’s views on decorative mural painting. However, despite contextual information this article may provide, this article did not have a lot of information specifically on Millet or on his paintings, besides a few brief mentions.
Caffin, Charles H. “Frank D. Millet’s Mural Painting for Pittsburg.” Harpers Weekly 41 (January 1897): 1294-95.
In his article for Harper’s Weekly, Caffin discusses Millet’s mural painting, Thesmophoria. The mural was commissioned for the Bank of Agriculture at Pittsburgh and was placed on one side of the main hall. Caffin explains that Millet’s painting embodies agriculture and has been exhibited at the American Art Galleries in New York. He provides an explanation of the subject matter and a brief formal analysis of the work. Caffin also identifies some of the figures in the painting as women that Millet knew.
Caffin praises the work as a union of architecture, sculpture, and painting.
This short article provides useful information on Millet’s Thesmophoria. It includes facts and context such as what the painting was commissioned for and what the subject matter of the painting was. Caffin also includes a formal description of the painting which isn’t found in a lot of other sources. He states his opinion on the work,
which provides insight to some of the contemporary reactions to Thesmophoria. It is an extremely useful source, especially if one is specifically looking for information on Thesmophoria.
Carroll, Abigail. “Of Kettles and Cranes: Colonial Revival Kitchens and the Performance of National Identity.” Winterthur Portfolio 42 (Winter 2009): 335-364.
Carroll discusses the interest in and revival of the American colonial period in the late 1800s and early 1900s. She focuses specifically on the interest in colonial kitchens in literature and art and she examines the use of colonial kitchens in art to represent certain American ideals such as family, community, and traditional gender roles. She explains that this colonial revival movement took off after the centennial in 1876 and many artists and writers began including colonial themes in their works. Carroll discusses many artworks and literature, including Francis Davis Millet’s A Cozy Corner. She mentions A Cozy Corner as an example of artworks that include scenes of colonial kitchens, especially ones that include a large hearth. This work is the only work Carrol mentions by Francis Davis Millet.
Although this source only mentioned Millet once and only discussed one painting, it provides important background of American ideas surrounding colonial life. This source is reliable and can help people understand many of Millet’s works since he exhibits an interest in colonial life in many of his paintings. This article was examined to find information on Millet’s Baby Worship since the scene portrayed takes place in a colonial room or kitchen. It did not include information on Baby Worship but still
provided contextual information that can help people understand the ideas behind the painting and its inclusion of colonial themes.
Coffin, William A. “Francis Davis Millet’s Easel Pictures.” Art and Progress 3 (July 1912): 643-648.
Coffin praises Millet as a well rounded, knowledgeable, and experienced artist. He discusses his openness to other styles and his progressive attitude towards art. Coffin uses Millet’s easel painting as an example of his ability to adapt to modem progress and do new and different things in art. He uses a few specific works as examples, such as Between Two Fires, At the Inn, Rook and Pigeon, The Black Hat, and Wandering Thoughts. For each painting, Coffin provides a description and brief analysis. The purpose of the article is to give praise to Millet and the work he did as an artist. This article was written after the artist’s death.
This is a reliable and helpful source if one is looking for information on Millet’s easel paintings. The source was examined for information on Baby Worship, which it did not have. However, the source does mention many of Millet’s other works and, though short, provides descriptions for each.
Curtis, Judith A. “The Easel Paintings of Francis Davis Millet.” American Art Review 11 (1999): 120-125.
Curtis discusses Millet’s easel paintings, claiming that they have been forgotten in history. She also gives a biographical account of Millet’s life and early career as an artist. She writes about his studies at Harvard and at Antwerp, his early jobs as a writer, his travels, and his genre painting. Curtis spends most of her article on the events of Millet’s life, but mentions the easel paintings he had created at different points of his life. The
paintings she mentions are The Expansionist, Turkish Water Seller, Sailing in the Bay of Naples, A Bashi-Bazouk, and Baby Worship. Some works are mentioned briefly, but others, like The Expansionist, are discussed more in detail.
This work was examined for information on Baby Worship, which it had. Curtis briefly mentioned the painting and wrote that it was exhibited at the spring exhibition of the National Academy of Design. Curtis writes a concise summary of Millet’s life and work as a painter and provides an efficient introduction to the artist and his work. This is a useful source that has a lot of biographical information presented in a concise way.
D’Angelo, Gina M. “Francis Davis Millet: The Early Years of “A Cosmopolitan Yankee,” 1846- 1884,” Ph.D. diss. City University of New York, 2004.
D’Angelo’s dissertation examines the early life and works of Francis Davis Millet within the context of his travels abroad and his support of cosmopolitanism. D’Angelo provides a lot of information on Millet’s travels and studies abroad and the work he participates in during his early years. The dissertation also discusses many of his early artworks. It is clear that D’Angelo conducted thorough research on Francis Davis Millet and consulted a large variety of sources available. It is an extremely reliable and useful source and serves as a great starting point for any research topic on Millet or any of his works.
D’ Angelo discusses both Baby Worship and Thesmophoria in this dissertation.
Regarding Baby Worship, D’ Angelo states that it was a composition of American Colonial life that celebrated motherhood and childhood. The image was painted in 1880 after the birth of Millet’s daughter, Kate, and was sent to the Fifty-Sixth Annual
Exhibition of the National Academy of Design. D’ Angelo also provides a description and a brief analysis of the painting.
The information on Thesmophoria is brief and explains that the Junette-shaped mural was painted for the main hall of the Bank of Pittsburgh but it was destroyed in 1944. The painting has clear influence from classical antiquity and D’Angelo discusses Millet’s classical subject matter in other works in her dissertation as well.
Harvard University. The Fourth Triennial Report of the Secretary of the Class of 1869 of Harvard College. Boston, MA: Press of Rockwell and Churchill, 1881.
This report is a record of the class of 1869 of Harvard. It provides updates to the lives of the members of the class up to the point the report was written. It includes an update that Frank Davis Millet provided for the report on page 32. In his update, he states that he was the American representative juror in the department of Fine Arts at the Paris International Exhibition in 1878. He lists a few works he painted from 1878-1880. These works include Les Pacificateurs, which was exhibited in the French salon of 1879 and then stolen; A Bashi Bazouk, which was exhibited in the royal Academy and then at the Academy of Design in New York before it was sold to John Jacob Astor; and Baby Worship, which was a historical genre scene exhibited at the Academy of Design in New York, along with his portrait of Miss Kate Field. Millet provides some personal life updates like his marriage to Elizabeth Merril, and the birth of his daughter, Kate. He also states he spent time studying costumes, making costumes for theaters, giving lectures, and working as an associate of the National Academy of Design in New York.
This is a significant primary source that includes information given by Francis Millet himself for this Harvard triennial report of the class of 1869. It provides approximate dates and context for his paintings as well as information such as where they were exhibited and who they were sold to. It is a short passage and doesn’t include a lot of information on the paintings, but the information included is helpful. Even though it is a short passage, since it is a primary source written by Millet, it is a reliable source of information.
This source provides helpful information specifically on the painting, Baby Worship. It provides context for the painting since Millet states it was painted shortly after the birth of his daughter, Kate. It was painted sometime during the spring and summer of 1880 and was hung in the exhibition of the Academy of Design in New York along with his portrait of Kate Field.
Harvard University. Report of the Secretary of the Class of 1869 of Harvard College. Boston, MA: Press of Rockwell and Churchill, 1894.
This report is a record of the class of 1869 of Harvard. It provides updates to the lives of the members of the class from 1887 to 1894. It includes an update that Frank Davis Millet provided for the report on page 58. This update includes the birth of his son, John Parsons Millet, on July 8, 1887. A large portion of his writing deals with his work as the director of decoration of the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1892, and his work conducting the department of entertainments called The Functions. He explains that for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, he supervised all the decorative painting, mechanical painting, sculpture, and other details of construction.
This primary source written by Millet provides reliable information regarding the work he was doing during 1887-1894. Unfortunately, it provides no information on specific paintings he worked on during this time. This source was examined in hopes it contained information on his painting, Thesmophoria, which he painted in 1894-1897.
However, this source did not have any information on this work or on any other work.
Harvard University. Ninth Report of the Class of 1869 of Harvard College. Boston, MA: Alfred Mudge & Son, 1901.
This report is a record of the class of 1869 of Harvard. It provides updates to the lives of the members of the class from 1894 to 1901. It includes an update that Frank Davis Millet provided for the report on page 57. In his update, he states he worked for the London Times in 1898 as a special correspondent. The information provided in this update is mostly from his travels to Manila for this job. While traveling, he visited multiple countries like Japan, China, Malaysia, and India. In 1900, he worked on organizing and superintending the decorating and furnishing of the United States National Pavilion at the Paris Exposition. He writes that he finished three pictures for the spring exhibitions but does not list which pictures these are.
This primary source written by Millet provides reliable information on the kinds of work he was doing during 1894-1901. It provides no information on specific paintings he worked on during this time, but it does mention he spent a lot of time in his studio working on paintings. This source was examined in hopes it contained information on his painting, Thesmophoria, which he painted in 1894-1897. However, this source did not have any information on this work or on any other work.
King, Pauline, American Mural Painting: A Study of the Important Decorations by Distinguished Artists in the United States. Boston, PA: Noyes, Platt & Company, 1902.
As the title suggests, this book is an overview of American mural painting and examines the most important works of decorative mural paintings. She looks at many mural painters throughout the book, including Francis Davis Millet. Of his works, King discusses his Thesmophoria. She writes that the painting was to accompany Blashfield’s tympanum in the Bank of Pittsburg. Of the other sources consulted on this specific work of art by Millet, King provides one of the more detailed description and analysis of Thesmophoria.
This is a reliable and an extremely useful source and includes more than half a page dedicated to a description of the painting. King also includes reactions from the bankers to the work. Anyone researching Thesmophoria would find this to be very helpful.
Kreiner, Mary Beth. “Francis Davis Millet’s Reading the Story of Oenone.” Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts 69 (1995): 14-25.
This article focuses on Millet’s Reading the Story of Oenone as a classical costume genre painting and his knowledge of ancient art and costume. Kreiner provides a background on Millet’s life and early education and career as a painter. She emphasizes Millet’s experience with classical antiquity and classical costumes. It is with a deep understanding of classical costume and art that Millet executes his Reading the Story of Oenone, which Kreiner claims is his most ambitious classical costume painting. Although the focus is on this painting, Kreiner uses other examples of Millet’s works that include classical subject
matter and his genre paintings that include costumes. These works include Lacing her Sandal, Between Two Fires, A Handmaid, The Well-Known Footstep, An Autumn Idyll, and Thesmophoria.
This is a reliable and useful source that has a focused thesis regarding classical subject matter and the use of costumes in the art of Francis Davis Millet. Kreiner provides a description of Thesmophoria, but looks at the mural painting within the context of classical costume paintings, which is a different look at the painting than other sources. This different viewpoint is helpful and provides new insights into the painting.
Kurtz, Charles M., trans. “Baby Worship-Francis D. Millet.” American Academy Notes,
exhibition catalog. 53-54. New York, National Academy of Design, 1881.
This is a catalog of the principal paintings in the fifty-sixth annual exhibition of the National Academy of Design. It includes two paintings by Millet which were exhibited at this exhibition. The first is a portrait of Kate Field and the other is Baby Worship. A description is included with each work. For Baby Worship, a short description is written and a short sentence praising the image as excellent. A drawing of the image is included.
This is a primary source and is reliable and useful because it shows that the works have been exhibited at the National Academy of Design and when. It also provides identifying information and descriptions of the work as well as a drawing.
Unidentified newspaper clipping. Francis Davis Millet Scrapbook I. American Academy of Arts & Letters, New York, NY.
This short newspaper clipping seems to be a review of Baby Worship, perhaps after an exhibition in which the painting was shown. The reviewer gave a positive critique of the work and praises Millet’s scene of colonial times. The review is only a paragraph long,
but it is a useful primary source that provides insights on contemporary ideas and values of the public. There seems to have been an interest in colonial themes and idealized women in paintings. This source can help one understand the context of the painting better.
Unidentified newspaper clipping. Francis Davis Millet Scrapbook #2. Archives of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York, NY.
The author of this newspaper article describes his visit to Millet’s studio at East Bridgewater. He describes the studio briefly then describes some of the paintings he sees. The author describes one painting to be a picture of Millet’s wife. Some other paintings he describes are of Chloe at the spinning wheel, Morning in Venice, a life-size portrait of himself painted by Maynard, a Venetian fisherman, and one painting called 1780. The author’s description of this painting included a child sat in an old-fashioned chair, surrounded by women. One of the women stood directly in front of the child with open arms to receive the child. This description seems to be a description of Baby Worship.
This is another useful primary source. It provides a nice description of the paintings as well as a look into Millet’s studio. The information on Baby Worship was very helpful and gave a clearer description of the painting than a lot of other sources.
Van Hook, Bailey, Angels of Art: Women and Art in American Society, 1876-1914. University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1996.
This source is a book that discusses the depiction of women in nineteenth-century American art. Van Hook examines American attitudes and views on women during this time and how contemporary art reflects those attitudes. She writes about the decorative movement and artistic trends surrounding women and how portrayals of women in
decorative art reflected societal views on women. Van Hook analyzes a few works by Millet and examines how they fit into art trends depicting women during the late 19h century. She mentions Reading the Story of Oenone, Autumn Idyll, and Thesmophoria.
Van Hook’s analysis on Millet’s works are thoughtful and important and it is clear she did a lot of research on the topic. It is a useful and reliable source that provides an important analysis of works by Millet including women. It can help readers understand contemporary thoughts and the depictions of women Millet includes in his art.
Van Hook, Bailey. “From the Lyrical to the Epic: Images of Women in American Murals at the Tum of the Century.” Winterthur Portfolio 26 (Spring 1991): 63-80.
Like her book, Van Hook approaches American painting from the late 19th century by focusing on how art of this time depicts women. In this article, she narrows her focus down to Mural paintings specifically. She discusses decorative mural painting and the allegorical subject matters they often had. She examines the dominant use of female subjects as the focus of these allegorical, decorative murals and connects it to contemporary attitudes toward women. She also discusses a change in art and the decline of female subjects in allegorical, decorative art by the early 20th century. A reason for the decline was the overuse of the subject matter.
Van Hook briefly mentions Millet and Thesmophoria in this article but does not provide very much detail on the painting. It is briefly mentioned and then she moves on to her next idea. She does include a quote by Millet regarding mural painting that could be useful if one were researching on decorative mural painting.