Learn more about the origins of this timeless art form from Freeman’s American Furniture, Folk and Decorative Arts specialists.
A technique with elegant simplicity and timeless allure, the origins of silhouette portraits can be traced back to antiquity. Throughout history, these portraits have captivated viewers of all classes, enduring through the 18th century until the rise of photography in the 19th century. As migrants flocked to the Americas, this art style quickly gained favor, with artists from continental Europe setting up studios across the Northeast to cut portraits for urban and rural settlers.
In Philadelphia, the silhouette found particular favor among the area’s numerous Quakers. Rather than a traditional portrait, silhouettes became an expression of community, identity, and modesty for Quakers. The affordability and straightforward execution of silhouettes allowed for people across class to commission them, allowing for the style’s proliferation.
The silhouette also symbolized the individual and democratic ideals of the nation following the American Revolution. As newly independent Americans sought to commemorate their heroes, silhouette art emerged as a means to forge a new national identity.
Philadelphia-area artists like Moses Williams, Charles Wilson Peale, Raphaelle Peale, Rembrandt Peale, and William Henry Brown rose to prominence for their exceptional cuttings and distinguished clientele. The Peale family’s renowned silhouettes of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson solidified the style’s place in American culture.
The silhouette reached its zenith in the 1780s—two decades after its introduction to the colonies—as heroes of the Revolutionary War were commemorated through the form. Though the silhouette’s popularity waned in the early 19th century, the arrival of the prominent European silhouettist Augustin Edouart in America in 1839 revitalized the style. Edouart’s detailed cuttings, intricate backgrounds, and characteristic full-length silhouettes attracted wealthy patrons and contributed to a resurgence of the form.
Silhouettes were created by several methods, including the physiognotrace—a device invented in France in 1783 that allowed for quick tracing and cutting of a sitter’s profile. Williams and Peale used this method in Philadelphia, favoring it for its efficiency. Hand-cut silhouettes—using the hollow-cut or cut-out technique—were also common. Hollow-cut silhouettes involved cutting the negative of a silhouette from a light sheet of paper and pasting it onto a dark background, while cut-out silhouettes entailed cutting the profile and placing it on top of a light paper background. Silhouettes could also be hand-painted, with an artist using black paint on a white background.
Though the form dates back to antiquity and stems from the European continent, it became a quintessentially American method of artmaking following the American Revolution. Philadelphia—a cultural and political hub throughout the 18th and 19th centuries—played a vital role in fostering the growth of silhouette art, epitomizing the democratic ideals represented by this captivating art form. Today, silhouettes continue to enchant audiences, standing as a timeless, elegant expression of artistry and individuality.