The photograph of a mother and son on this tinsel painting is typical of many taken during the Civil War, with the young boy wearing a replica uniform topped by an officer’s cap. A framer’s label on the reverse for the Baltimore firm M. Barrett & Bro., offers important insight into this painting, which was probably created in Baltimore during the war. Maryland was a slave-holding state but did not secede from the Union. As a border state, her sons supported and fought both with the Union and Confederate armies. Thus, the dark uniform worn by the young boy in this picture suggests strong Union sympathies within his family.

Lee Kogan, "Wreath of Flowers with Photograph of Mother and Son," exhibition label for FOILED: Tinsel Painting in America. Lee Kogan, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2012-2013.