# We Both Must Fade (Mrs. Fithian)

**Lilly Martin Spencer** (1822–1902)  
1869  
oil on canvas  
72 x 53 3/4 in. (182.9 x 136.5 cm.)

Courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, 1970.101. [The museum's record](https://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artwork/?id=22794).

## About this work

Mrs. Fithian stands before a mirror, admiring the tokens that others have given in praise of her beauty. She wears lace and pearls, and a blue gown that has just been taken from its box. But like the rose in her hand with its falling petals, her beauty will fade, and with it, all the pleasures the world can provide. The extinguished lamps, which darken the parlor to dramatic effect, emphasize the message of the painting. Thomas C. Latto romanticized this subject in a poem:

_Text from the Smithsonian American Art Museum._

Lilly Martin Spencer painted this in 1869, aged 47. It is now at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, DC.

### 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.

### [Lilly Martin Spencer](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/lilly-martin-spencer)

1822–1902

## Facts

- Type: Painting
- The artist was 47
- Real size: about 72 × 54 in (183 × 137 cm). The original is larger than our largest print, 16 × 20 in, so every print is a reduction.
- Century: 19th century
- Subjects: Vanity, Women, Quality, Life, Portraits, Allegory
- 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/1938.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1938/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3

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/we-both-must-fade-mrs-fithian-si-saam-1970-101).