NY State Historical Association

Nineteenth century relations between the sexes, Abolitionist preaching, political chicanery, all were grist for visual puns incorporated into seemingly simple scenes of country life on Long Island. Mount's neighbors and upwardly mobile city patrons readily "got" his subtle - and not so subtle - jokes, sometimes with a subtext about the political role of freed slaves. Presidential campaigns in the late 1830s and early 1840s had deteriorated into manipulation of carefully chosen symbols, and Mount exploited these in his art. Mount's "insider" jokes, double entendres, puns, and political humor will motivate discussion about the political and social themes of Mount's day. What is represented by the boy tickling a sleeping black man with a straw in Farmers Nooning, 1836? What does the trap represent in Catching Rabbits, 1839? Discovery of Mount's sharp wit adds another dimension to appreciation of his art.

Elizabeth Kahn Kaplan, Director of Education at the Three Village Historical Society will present this talk based on her years of research on the artist.

This lecture will be held in the Fenimore Art Museum Auditorium.