Isabel Elizabeth Smith
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Isabel Elizabeth Smith (1843-1938) was an American artist, mostly known for miniature painting and teaching.


Early life

Isabel Elizabeth Smith was born in
Clermont County, Ohio Clermont County, popularly called Clermont ( ), is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 208,601. Ordinanced in 1800 as part of the Virginia Military District, Clermont is Ohio's eighth oldest county, t ...
, in 1843. She was of Scotch descent. Her father, Alexander Smith, was born in Perthshire, Scotland. He arrived in the United States in 1820 and located in
Belmont County, Ohio Belmont County is a County (United States), county located in the eastern end of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 66,497. Its county seat is St. Clairsville, Ohio, St. Clairsville, while its larges ...
. His wife was Rachel McClain. They had a family of three children, a son and two daughters. The father was a man of great nobility of character, a lover of art and a philanthropist. The mother was a woman of excellent mind and given to the doing of kindly deeds. Smith early developed a taste for art. She was educated in the Western Female College,
Oxford, Ohio Oxford is a city in northwestern Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion ...
, and studied art during vacations in
Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
. After her education she went abroad and studied in Paris and Dresden. After an absence of nearly three years she returned to the United States and opened a studio in
Washington, D. C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, in 1871.


Career

She achieved marked success in portrait painting, having many prominent persons as sitters, among them Secretary
Edwin Stanton Edwin McMasters Stanton (December 19, 1814December 24, 1869) was an American lawyer and politician who served as U.S. Secretary of War, U.S. secretary of war under the Lincoln Administration during most of the American Civil War. Stanton's manag ...
, a full-length portrait of whom was ordered from her by the representatives of the city government. She also painted the portrait of Mary Frances Grant Cramer, a sister of Gen.
Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...
. While in that city, she became a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. During her years of labor in Washington her eyes failed her, but after a season of rest she again went to Paris to learn the Sèvres method of painting on porcelain. She also studied in the
Dresden Gallery Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...
, receiving criticisms from the celebrated Director
Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (26 March 1794 – 24 May 1872) () was a German painter, chiefly of Biblical subjects. As a young man he associated with the painters of the Nazarene movement who revived the florid Renaissance style in religious ...
. On her return she opened a studio in New York City, where she had the best possible recognition from the literary and art circles. While there she was elected a member of
Sorosis file:Sorosis Club rules.jpg, Sorosis Club rules in 1869Sorosis was the first professional women's club in the United States. It was established in March 1868 in New York City by Jane Cunningham Croly. Origin of the club's name Sorosis is a lati ...
, in which society she held the position of chairman of the art committee. She usually had several students, whom she taught gratuitously. When fifteen years of age, she had a severe illness, during which she vowed to build a church for the poor in her native place, which through her aid and influence was done, and to which she gave her interest and help. She painted in Cincinnati, and her portraits there were highly praised. She was the instructor in art in
Chautauqua, New York Chautauqua ( ) is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town and lake resort community in Chautauqua County, New York, Chautauqua County, New York (state), New York. The population was 4,009 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Cha ...
, for four years, having her studio in the Kellogg Memorial Building. She gave up her studio in New York to devote her time and care to her invalid mother.


Personal life

In 1895 she married F. Carl Smith (1867-1955), a marine and genre painter. The couple worked and studied in Paris for several years, then New York City, to finally settling in Washington, D.C., in 1902. In 1917 they moved to
Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...
. Her father owned a large tract of land in Florida, near the mouth of the St. John's river, where he had an orange grove and a winter home. There she spent several winters. She died in 1938.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Isabel Elizabeth People from Clermont County, Ohio 1843 births 1938 deaths Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century American women painters Painters from Ohio American people of Scottish descent American portrait painters