Featured Artwork: A Most Happy Birthday to Mamma

Violets in a Yellow Mug, made by RSW in 1902

Editor's Note:

Below, in earlier versions of this artwork page we mistakenly attributed the "mistake" on the back of this home-made card for Woodward's mother to Woodward himself. We have written an addendum. Still, it was also never explain how we know the year given to this item is wrong. First, the card gives "14 years old" as the age of RSW in 1904, when RSW was actually, 19 y.o. But he could be neither age to make this card because the watercolor to the right was made in 1902 when RSW was 17 y.o. The gap in maturity and skill is just too great to believe Woodward was anything else but 9 years old in 1894 when he made this.

Back of A Most Happy Birthday to Mamma

This "card" Woodward made for his mother was part of a collection of papers, photographs and other items given to the Smithsonian Museum, and is found in their collection. The handwriting suggest he was quite young. The back of the card is dated 1904, but we believe this to be incorrect. Woodward would have been 19 years old by that year. Given the handwriting still being very child-like, we when he was 9 the more likely time period.

Addendum, Mar. 11, 2025:

Woodward's painting diary mistakes are most often the year a painting was made. However, our mistake is often, not asking ourselves if what we wrote makes sense. Here is a good example, while RSW is bad at recalling years. We do not think he didn't know what age he was in a certain year. The note on the back of the home-made card had to be written by someone else. Not his mother, because she would also know what age he was when, which leaves us his cousin Florence who compiled the collection for the Smithsonian. A cousin could make a mistake like this.