Salisbury Field

1805-1900

American Artist

Field was born in Leverett, Massachusetts. During his long life Erastus was never to wander more than 200 miles away from this rural setting. Early demonstrations of ability led his parents to send him to New York to study with Samuel Morse, a well-known portraitist, from who Field absorbed urban influences and acquired knowledge of academic models. Field's formal training came to an abrupt end, though, when Morse's young wife died in 1825. Field returned to the farm in Leverett and painted the first of his known works. For the next fifteen years, Field traversed the Connecticut River Valley and practiced his talent of portraiture. His work during this period is bold and dramatic, transforming rural Yankee farmers and their wives into provincial royalty. The Civil War followed not long after, and Field's strong views about slavery, governmental corruption, temperance, and religion influenced his next three decades of work. His unparalleled legacy establishes him as perhaps the premiere figure in the 19th century American primitive tradition.