Locating Girlhood: Place and Identity in Early American “Schoolgirl” Art

Locating Girlhood brings together nearly 100 works created by American girls in the 18th and 19th centuries, including needlework, watercolors, landscapes, maps and decorative arts. The exhibition sheds new light on a long-overlooked artistic genre, exploring the connections between place, identity and female creativity. It expands the history of the American landscape by highlighting the role of girls and women in its representation. Coinciding with the 250th anniversary of the United States, it celebrates their creativity while examining the colonial and early republican ideas that shaped their worldview.

Needlework Picture Attributed to Faith Trumbull (1743-1775)