Samuel Stillman Osgood
Encyclopedia
Samuel Stillman Osgood was a 19th-century American
portrait
painter
.
to James Osgood and Elizabeth Badger. He studied painting in Boston, Massachusetts. After his marriage to poet Frances Sargent Locke
he continued his art education at the Royal Academy
in London
. Upon returning to America he settled in New York City
, where he was made an associate of the National Academy of Design. In 1849 he went to California
were he stayed nearly a year, prospecting
for gold and painting portraits in San Francisco.
His wife died of tuberculosis
in 1850. Osgood designed her memorial at Mount Auburn Cemetery
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
, where she was buried. Inspired by her poem "The Hand That Swept the Sounding Lyre", Osgood designed a 15-foot memorial: a white marble base topped by a bronze lyre
crowned by a laurel wreath. Four of the five strings of the lyre were designed as cut (symbolizing his wife and three daughters, who were all dead by 1851). On his death, he asked his second wife to cut the fifth string.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
portrait
Portrait
thumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
.
Biography
He was born in New Haven, ConnecticutNew Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
to James Osgood and Elizabeth Badger. He studied painting in Boston, Massachusetts. After his marriage to poet Frances Sargent Locke
Frances Sargent Osgood
Frances Sargent Osgood was an American poet and one of the most popular women writers during her time...
he continued his art education at the Royal Academy
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Upon returning to America he settled in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he was made an associate of the National Academy of Design. In 1849 he went to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
were he stayed nearly a year, prospecting
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
for gold and painting portraits in San Francisco.
His wife died of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
in 1850. Osgood designed her memorial at Mount Auburn Cemetery
Mount Auburn Cemetery
Mount Auburn Cemetery was founded in 1831 as "America's first garden cemetery", or the first "rural cemetery", with classical monuments set in a rolling landscaped terrain...
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, where she was buried. Inspired by her poem "The Hand That Swept the Sounding Lyre", Osgood designed a 15-foot memorial: a white marble base topped by a bronze lyre
Lyre
The lyre is a stringed musical instrument known for its use in Greek classical antiquity and later. The word comes from the Greek "λύρα" and the earliest reference to the word is the Mycenaean Greek ru-ra-ta-e, meaning "lyrists", written in Linear B syllabic script...
crowned by a laurel wreath. Four of the five strings of the lyre were designed as cut (symbolizing his wife and three daughters, who were all dead by 1851). On his death, he asked his second wife to cut the fifth string.
Portrait work
- Frances Sargent Osgood
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