4x5 transparency scanned on Hasselblad Flextight X1 by Ed Pollard-2014.

Nicholas Mundy

Artist Ammi Phillips (American, 1788-1865)

Date1852

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsOverall: 32 x 26 in. (81.3 x 66 cm)

ClassificationsAmerican art

Credit LineGift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch

Object number78.633.9

Terms

Man
Black
White
Nude
Red
Gold
Pink
Blue
American naive
Folk art

On View

Not on view

DescriptionOil on canvas painting of a man holding a folded newspaper in his left hand. The readable half of the folded paper spells "Tribune." The sitter, Nicholas Mundy, holds a pair of glasses in his right hand. He is wearing a black suit with black vest, a black scarf tied around his white high collared shirt.

Label TextAmmi Phillips American, 1788–1865 Nicholas Mundy, 1852 Oil on canvas Compare the head and hands of this gentleman with those in the two portraits to the left. Here, wrinkles and deep shadows give individuality and character to the sitter’s face, while his fingers, actively gripping a newspaper and eyeglasses, reveal the artist’s understanding of anatomy and shading. Ammi Phillips developed this complexity over decades of working as an itinerant portraitist and sign painter in the Hudson River Valley and western Connecticut. An early example of Phillips’ work in the next gallery helps demonstrate the evolution of his skills. Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch 78.633.9