Athenuem-Type Portrait Of George Washington
ArtistAfter
Gilbert Stuart
(American, 1755-1828)
CultureAmerican
DateLate 18th or early 19th century
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsOverall: 32 3/8 x 27 1/4 in. (82.2 x 69.2 cm)
InscribedUnsigned.
Credit LineMuseum purchase and Gift of Edna and Hugh Gordon Miller and Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.
Object number75.106
Not on view
DescriptionOil on canvas portrait (Athenaeum type) of George Washington.Label TextAfter Gilbert Stuart American (1755-1828) Athenaeum-type Portrait of George Washington, late 18th or early 19th century Oil on canvas Museum Purchase and Gift of Edna and Hugh Gordon Miller and Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 75.106 Although its authorship is unknown, this painting derives from the most famous life portrait of George Washington - Gilbert Stuart's "Athenaeum" portrait, ca. 1796, which is so known because the original and a companion portrait of Martha Washington were for many years owned by the Boston Athenaeum. The "Athenaeum" portrait, with its unfinished lower portion is familiar to most Americans, because it was so widely reproduced by photolithography in the 20th century for display in schoolrooms. Today the original "Athenaeum" portrait is jointly owned by the National Gallery of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts Boston - proof of its enduring iconic status. Stuart himself painted many replicas. And other major painters such as Rembrandt Peale, who had himself painted Washington from life, are known to have produced copies.Exhibition History"Three Hundred Years of American Art in the Chrysler Museum," Chrysler Museum at Norfolk, Va., March 1 - July 4, 1976. "First in the Hearts of His Countrymen: America Remembers George Washington 1732-1799," Chrysler Museum of Art, Nov. 23, 1999 - Summer 2001.
