Woman's Work - Telling Fortunes by American Harry Herman Roseland (c.1867-1950)

Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950) The Palm Reader. The visitor is wearing a hat & carrying her purse & a parasol. A hatbox filled with yarn sits on the floor & unfinished knitting hangs from the chair behind the fortune teller.

Genre painter Harry Herman Roseland (c.1867-1950) was born & died in Brooklyn and was known for depicting the lives of African-Americans, especially black women reading tea leaves, palms, & cards for white women wearing hats. Often hat boxes, both open & closed, sit nearby. Perhaps the hat boxes were being used as sewing boxes by the readers who are often shown with yarn dotting the floor. Parasols & fans are also props in these paintings.

Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950). Reading the Cards. Hat worn by the visitor with a parasol carried in her hand. Board holding cards rests on hatbox. A nearby sewing box has a ball of yarn on the floor in front of it. Unfinished knitting hangs from the chair behind the fortune teller.
Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950). It's All in the Cards 1898. Hat worn by the visitor with parasol carried in hand. A ball of yarn is on the floor.
Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950). Palm Reader 1890. Hat worn by the visitor. Parasol on the back of the chair. Hat box seems full of scraps & a ball of yarn is on the floor. A piece of a needlework project is on the fortune teller's lap & more of the work hangs on the chair behind her.
Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950). Reading the Cards 1899 Hat worn as well as one in a box. Parasol carried by the visitor plus one just behind the sofa. Fan on the sofa behind the visitor. Scraps of ribbon are on the floor.
Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950). Reading the Cards 1903. One visitor wears a hat and carries a parasol; while the other carries her hat. The hatbox is on the chair behind the group and seems to be filled with scraps. Yarn is on the floor near the fortune teller. Unfinished knitting hangs from the visitor's chair.
Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950). Seeing into the Future. The visitor holds her hat and her parasol rests on the chair behind her. The hatbox seems to be full of ribbons. Unfinished knitting hangs from the visitor's rocking chair.
Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950). The Fortune Teller 1904. The visitor holds her hat while her parasol hangs on the chair behind her.

Harry Herman Roseland (c 1867-1950). The Fortune-Teller. The visitor wears her hat & holds her parasol. The hatbox sits on the footstool serving as the flat surface for the cards. Yarn is on the floor near the fortune teller. Unfinished knitting hangs from the visitor's rocking chair.
Harry Herman Roseland (c.1867-1950). Reading the Tea Leaves 1910. Each visitor wears her hat and has her parasol nearby. The open hatbox is on the table behind them. Yarn is on the floor near the fortune teller. Unfinished knitting hangs from one of the visitor's chairs.
Harry Herman Roseland (c.1867-1950). The Palmist 1909. The visitor's hat is on the floor behind her.