Chester Harding’s 1849 “Portrait of a Lady,” oil on panel. New Englanders Harding (1792 – 1866) and his younger brother, Horace, found some success in the portrait trade in early 19th century Kentucky, where they were influenced by Matthew Harris Jouett, the state’s great native portraitist. Chester Harding was the embodiment of the itinerant American portrait painter of the first half of the 19th century. In 1849 he was in Washington, D.C., working on a likeness of statesman Daniel Webster. While there he visited with his friend photographer Matthew Brady, whose wife bears some resemblance to the “Lady” of the portrait. “Portrait of a Lady” measures 32 by 22 inches (38 by 32 inches, framed) and is inscribed, verso, “Chester Harding 1849.” Further information is available at the PFA website.