# The Chaperone

**Thomas Eakins** (American, 1844–1916)  
c. 1908  
oil on canvas  
overall: 46.3 x 36.2 cm (18 1/4 x 14 1/4 in.) framed: 63.5 x 53.3 x 8.3 cm (25 x 21 x 3 1/4 in.)

Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1991.34.1. [The museum's record](https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.72165.html).

## About this work

An elderly woman in a dark blue gown and head covering sits absorbed in the work in her hands, her eyes lowered. She is the chaperone from Thomas Eakins’s late paintings of William Rush, the Philadelphia sculptor shown carving a statue from a nude model while an older woman sits by for propriety, knitting. Eakins returned to the subject around 1908, near the end of his career, and this study shows his sympathetic interest in the quiet, watchful figure at the edge of the scene.

_Written by Ochre Editions._

Thomas Eakins painted this in about 1908, aged 64. It is now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

### What you’re looking at

This painting shows a person seated on a stool or chair, wearing a long, dark-blue robe or gown. They are slightly turned toward the right, looking downward at something they hold in their hands, and their head is covered with a cloth or cap. The background is textured with earthy tones, mostly tan with some patches of yellow ochre and gray.

_Description from the National Gallery of Art._

### How it was made

- **Oil paint.** Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.

### [Thomas Eakins](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/thomas-eakins)

American, 1844–1916; born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Eakins studied in Paris under Jean-Léon Gérôme and was impressed in Spain by Velázquez and Ribera, then returned to Philadelphia, where he spent his life. He painted rowers, boxers and his city’s doctors and scholars with a frank realism grounded in anatomy, perspective and, later, photography. A demanding teacher at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, he was forced to resign in 1886 over his use of nude models. Max Schmitt in a Single Scull was the first of his rowing pictures.

_Written by Ochre Editions._

## Facts

- Type: Painting
- The artist was 64
- Real size: about 18 × 14 in (46 × 36 cm). The 16 × 20 in print is close to life size.
- Century: 20th century
- Subjects: female, Seated figure
- Colour: brown
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/1618.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1618/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68; 20 × 30 in $86; 24 × 36 in $108
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164; 20 × 30 in $208; 24 × 36 in $258
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98; 18 × 24 in $118; 20 × 30 in $148
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3; 20 × 30 in $5; 24 × 36 in $5

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/the-chaperone-nga-72165).