Portrait of a Negress: Post-colonial Studies of a Black Female Subject

Authors

Abby Beal, Brigham Young University
Dr. Martha Peacock, Brigham Young University

Keywords

Portrait of a Negress, black female, post-colonial studies, paintings

College

Fine Arts and Communications

Department

Art

Abstract

The painting Portrait of a Negress completed in 1800 is a rare piece for its time. The painting is unique because of its isolation of a rare subject for art—the black woman. Not only is the subject rare, but also the painting gains more interest because the artist was a woman herself— uncommon in France in the 1800s. Traditionally, the connection between a painter and a black subject at this time can be seen as a colonial ownership over the black visual. However, the connection between the woman artist, Marie Benoist, and her black female subject in this painting is not traditional. Therefore, the study of this painting shows that the artist and subject successfully connected on the basis of gender, therefore overriding racial, colonial, social, and economic barriers between the two women.

Recommended Citation

Beal, Abby and Peacock, Dr. Martha (2014) "Portrait of a Negress: Post-colonial Studies of a Black Female Subject," Journal of Undergraduate Research: Vol. 2014: Iss. 1, Article 440.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jur/vol2014/iss1/440