Enthroned

Bessie Potter Vonnoh

1902, cast 1906 · Bronze · The American Wing

Vonnoh is best-known for her sculpted representations of motherhood in which intimate mood and impressionistic handling of form take precedence over close physical description. In "Enthroned" she links the timeless mother-and-child theme with a sensitive representation of a woman ensconced in a throne-like chair with an infant resting on her lap and a daughter standing on either side. Although the mother has been identified as Helena Walter, a German immigrant, the group is not a portrait, but rather a personification of an ideal modern Madonna—dignified, enthroned, and venerated.

Artist

Bessie Potter Vonnoh

Date

1902, cast 1906

Medium

Bronze

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Gift of George A. Hearn, 1906