More than 200 years after the first theorem painting appeared in the United States, its singular impact on the lives and homes of countless Americans has largely been forgotten.
But in its heyday during the early- and mid-1800s, thousands of women and even a few men embraced this newly developed, step-by-step method for making art as a gateway into a realm of expression that was previously difficult if not impossible for the average person to enter.
In the most accomplished hands, the combination of carefully cut stencils and skillfully applied paint produced works of such lifelike and engaging visual character that — over time — the theorem became an American folk art icon.
Just take a look at "Basket of Fruit," one of 11 examples on view at Colonial Williamsburg's Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum in the first exhibit of theorems it has mounted in nearly 40 years.
Painted by Massachusetts artist Mary Bradley about 1825, the image grabs the eye with its beautifully defined grapes, cherries and other fruits — all of them set off by the crisp edges of the surrounding foliage.
Expert shading combines with precisely cut and positioned stencils to give each element a strong 3-dimensional presence.
Then there are the equally lifelike tendrils, stems and foliar details that Bradley added so deftly to the white velvet surface with her own paints and brushes.
"Even during the period, art critics panned theorems because they said there was nothing artistic about them," CW Curator Laura Pass Barry said, describing the seemingly endless stream of fruit bowl and flower basket paintings that sprang from the methodic procedure.
"But when you look at this, it's beautifully done — and you can see why Mrs. Rockefeller recognized the importance of this form early on. It's a wonderful example of the art of everyday people."
Made up of choice examples dating from about 1820 to 1860, "Color and Shape: The Art of the American Theorem" takes an intimate look at the form, which found its first practitioners in the regions surrounding such urban centers as Boston and Baltimore but soon spread deep into the nation's hinterlands.
Among the surprises on view here is "Vase of Roses," an 1854 theorem executed by Jefferson County, Ky., schoolgirl Harriet Miller in one of the first Catholic boarding schools to operate in the South's backcountry.
That widespread presence shows the speed and enthusiasm with which Americans embraced the theorem as a sign of genteel aspiration and accomplishment after it arrived from Great Britain about 1800, Pass Barry says.
In addition to being taught and studied in countless female academies, the method was spread by traveling artists eager to offer instruction books, lessons, stencils and supplies to their rural clientele.
It also showed up in such stylish national magazines as Godey's Lady's Book, which frequently offered pre-printed stencils and instructions, as well as in decks of pre-printed stencils sold in stores.
Three period examples of stencils can be see in the exhibit, which also features a short video in which contemporary Williamsburg theorem artist Nancy Rosier demonstrates the process of cutting stencils, laying them out in a composition and than using them to create a painted image.
"You could buy everything ready-made — or you could do it yourself," Pass Barry said, "because there were instructions and recipes for making your own stencil paper and paints."
Not everyone who took up theorem painting was the equal of the masterful Bradley, whose standout talents are a chief attraction of the exhibit.
But even among the less accomplished works — including numerous very similar examples of such popular patterns as "The Full Basket" and "Fruit, Bird, Butterfly" — it's easy to pick out the passages of bold color, dynamic shape and rhythmic pattern that first caught Mrs. Rockefeller's pioneering eye nearly 100 years ago.
The influential collector purchased four of the 11 works on view here after recognizing the strong links between the avant garde works she championed in the early 1900s and the untrained art of everyday people.
"Theorem paintings form an excellent bridge between Abby's interests in early American and Modern Art," say co-curator Kate Teiken.
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