Harry Lewis, Charles and Lew readying Richard Singleton (Primary Title)
Richard Singleton (Alternate Title)
Richard Singleton with "Viley's Harry, Charles and Lew" (Primary Title)
Edward Troye, American, 1808 - 1874 (Artist)
Harry Lewis, the man to the left in top hat and tailcoat, was a horse trainer of exceptional talent. Captain Willa Viley of Kentucky purchased the enslaved Lewis and later, after according him legal freedom, paid him to continue training his horses for competition. The two other people in the painting were enslaved members of Viley’s household: a groom named Charles and the young jockey, Lew, who looks away to the right.
The horse that dominates the center of the composition was named after Richard Singleton of Melrose, a plantation owner from Santee, South Carolina. Singleton was another prominent racehorse owner. He had commissioned work from Troye during the spring of 1834 and likely recommended Troye to Viley.
"Facing History: The Black Image in American Art 1710-1940", The Corcoran gallery of Art, Washington, DC, January 13 - March 25, 1990, The Brooklyn Museum, April 20 - June 25, 1990
"Painting in the South: 1564-1980", VMFA, September 14 - November 27, 1983
"Works of Edward Troye, 1808-1874" National Museum of Racing, Inc, Saratoga Springs, NY, July 20 - August 31, 1981
National Museum of Racing, Inc. Saratoga Springs, NY, Summer, 1966
"Life in America", The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1939
"Loan Exhibition of Paintings by Edward Troye, Newhouse Gallery, NY, 1938
Some object records are not complete and do not reflect VMFA's full and current knowledge. VMFA makes routine updates as records are reviewed and enhanced.
