Ammi Phillips

(1788–1865)

Ammi Phillips was born in Colebrook, Connecticut, in 1788 and set off in 1811 to begin his career as an itinerant portrait painter. His work shows the influence of turn-of-the-century Connecticut portraitists such as Reuben Moulthrop, Nathaniel Wales, and Uriah Brown. Phillips’ art had a number of stylistic phases, beginning with the dreamlike works executed during the 1810s that were formerly attributed to the Border Limner. After around 1817, Phillips alternated between a naturalistic and an abstract style. He traveled widely in New York State, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.