Chancel of Trinity Chapel, New York

Hill presumably painted this watercolor in recognition of the new Trinity Chapel on West 25th Street. As the population of lower Manhattan swelled unrelentingly in the mid-nineteenth century, wealthy citizens moved to “uptowns” more and more northerly, making services at the original Trinity Church less convenient for them to attend. Designed in 1851 by Richard Upjohn, both buildings were central to the spiritual life of the city’s Anglican elite. The inaugural status of the chapel is here suggested by the baptismal ritual being conducted at left. Medium: watercolor, gouache, black ink, graphite, and gum arabic on off-white wove paper.
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