JOHN JAMES TRUMBULL ARNOLD (PENNSYLVANIA, MARYLAND, VIRGINIA, 1812-1865) FOLK ART PORTRAIT, oil on canvas, depicting four-year-old Mary Mattingly of Mount Savage, Maryland holding a rose in one hand. Signed, inscribed, and dated "Portrait of Mary Mattingly / Drawn by John Arnold / On the 26th of October / 1850" in Arnold's calligraphic script verso. Housed in a custom black-painted folk art frame with corner blocks. Circa 1850. 32" x 25" sight, 38" x 31 1/2" OA.

Literature: See Christie's, October 21,1995, lot 68 for the portraits of Mary Mattingly's parents. Also see New Orleans Auction Co., May 20, 2012, lot 1056, and Sotheby's, September 30, 2010, lot 63 for other examples by the artist.

Provenance: Collection of the late John and Lil Palmer, Purcellville, VA.
Ex-collection of John Dobricky, Warrenton, VA, 1999.
Purchased from Norma Wangel, Potomac, MD.

Catalogue Note: This outstanding portrait is one of a known group of works signed by, or attributed to, John James Trumball Arnold (1812-1865), an itinerant artist who worked in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia (including what is now West Virginia). This portrait of Mary Mattingly was completed approximately five days after the completion of a pair of portraits of her parents, Ellen and Silvester Mattingly, both of which are similarly inscribed verso and are now located in a private collection. Mary’s portrait was acquired directly from Mattingly descendants in 1990 by Norma Wangel, who some time later sold the painting to John Dobricky. The Palmers acquired the work from Mr. Dobricky in 1999.
Examples of Arnold’s work reside in the collection of Colonial Williamsburg as well as a number of private collections. The present example is a classic work by Arnold employing minimal decoration to the background and to the sitter's dress in an effort to draw the viewer's eye to the subject's face and her hand holding a rose. The arrangement is highly effective, conveying an immediate sense of the child's beauty and innocence at just a glance. The sale of this portrait represents a rare opportunity to acquire an outstanding and highly desirable work by an important American itinerant folk artist.

Very good condition with some craquelure, a few small patches/repairs and associated retouching to paint.