George Washington (The Athenaeum Portrait)

Object Details

Artist

Gilbert Stuart, 3 Dec 1755 - 9 Jul 1828

Sitter

George Washington, 22 Feb 1732 - 14 Dec 1799

Exhibition Label

Gilbert Stuart first painted George Washington in 1795 (in a work now known only from copies). That painting was so successful that, according to artist Rembrandt Peale, Martha Washington “wished a Portrait for herself.” She persuaded her husband to sit again for Stuart “on the express condition that when finished it should be hers.” Stuart, however, did not want to part with the picture and left it unfinished so that he could refer to it when producing future commissions. Known as the “Athenaeum” portrait because it went to the Boston Athenaeum after Stuart’s death, this painting served as the basis for the engraving of Washington that appears on the one-dollar bill. John Neal, an early-nineteenth-century writer and art critic, wrote, “Though a better likeness of him were shown to us, we should reject it; for, the only idea that we now have of George Washington, is associated with Stuart’s Washington.”

Gilbert Stuart pintó a George Washington por primera vez en 1795, aunque dicha obra ahora solo se conoce por copias. La pintura tuvo tanto éxito que, según el artista Rembrandt Peale, Martha Washington “deseaba un retrato para ella”. Fue así que convenció a su esposo de que posara de nuevo para Stuart “con la condición expresa de que la pintura sería de ella cuando la terminara”. Sin embargo, Stuart no quiso desprenderse de la obra y la dejó inconclusa para poder usarla de referencia en encargos futuros. Conocida como el retrato del “Ateneo” debido a que pasó al Ateneo de Boston al morir Stuart, esta pintura fue la base para el grabado de Washington que aparece en el billete de un dólar. John Neal, escritor y crítico de arte de principios del siglo XIX, escribió: “Aun si nos mostraran un mejor retrato suyo, tendríamos que rechazarlo, pues la única idea que tenemos hoy de George Washington está vinculada con el Washington pintado por Stuart”.

Provenance

The artist; his daughter Jane Stuart; purchased in May, 1831, by the Trustees of the Boston Athenaeum with funds raised by subscription from the Washington Monument Association and 22 additional subscribers; purchased 1980 jointly by NPG and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts

Credit Line

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; owned jointly with Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

1796

Object number

NPG.80.115

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Type

Painting

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

121.9cm x 94cm (48" x 37"), Accurate

See more items in

National Portrait Gallery Collection

Exhibition

America's Presidents (Reinstallation September 2017)

On View

NPG, South Gallery 240

National Portrait Gallery

Topic

George Washington: Male

George Washington: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer\Revolutionary War Army officer

George Washington: Politics and Government\Statesman\Colonial statesman

George Washington: Natural Resource Occupations\Agriculturist\Farmer

George Washington: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer\General

George Washington: Politics and Government\President of US

George Washington: Science and Technology\Surveyor

George Washington: Congressional Gold Medal

Portrait

Record ID

npg_NPG.80.115

Metadata Usage (text)

Usage conditions apply

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4ba9f41f4-e0ac-4f6f-8d16-dcdbafe4e84e