Woman churning butter, man in Revolutionary dress watching 

Edwin Austin Abbey created "Woman churning butter, man in Revolutionary dress watching" in watercolor and graphite sometime between 1890 and 1911. This quiet, intimate scene seems to invite questions about gender roles in post-revolutionary America. The artist places a woman engaged in the domestic labor of butter churning, while a man in revolutionary garb looks on, seated above her. What is the nature of his gaze? Is it one of support, detachment, or something else? In many ways, women were central to the revolutionary effort through boycotts, fundraising, and even direct involvement in battles, yet they didn't receive the same political and social recognition. The muted palette creates a feeling of introspection, leading us to contemplate the contributions of women like this one, and to ask what kind of nation was being built at the expense of their equal rights.