A. George Washington, 1795

Much of Gilbert Stuart's fame rests on his 100 portraits of George Washington. In November 1794, he had his first sitting with the President, in Philadelphia. Stuart painted three portraits of Washington from life. These life sittings provided the basis for 97 replicas. The great standing portrait (B), commissioned by Lord Lansdowne, was one of the three painted from life. It remains, along with Stuart's famous Athenaeum ("unfinished") portrait, one of the strongest Washington images.

C. John Singleton Copley, 1784
Oil on canvas, oval, 26 x 22 inches.
National Portrait Gallery, London

This delightful portrayal of Stuart's fellow artist and competitor gives us a very handsome portrait of the popular young artist. The deepset eyes are slightly blurred, the wig is brushed in with fluffy, Gainsborough-like brushstrokes, the jacket and white collar and ruffle are freely brushed. The background is an abstract sky, with cloud forms loosely indicated.

D. Sir Joshua Reynolds,1784
Oil on canvas 36 x 30 inches.
National Gallery of Art, Washington

Joshua Reynolds was President of England's Royal Academy and the most influential artist of his day. This superb portrait by Gilbert Stuart, while in fact an attempt to emulate Reynolds' style, in fact is painted more in the manner of Gainsborough, Reynolds' arch competitor. The head is extraordinarily revealing of character.

E. The Skater (William Grant), 1782
Oil on canvas, 96 x 58 inches.
National Gallery of Art, Washington

Painted in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1782, this charming picture is widely regarded as Stuart's masterpiece. As a portrait, the painting combines unusual subject matter, cool, subdued color, solid draftsmanship, and effortless-appearing technique. The dark costume and hat contrast strongly with the whites and grays of the background. The large dark on the ice provides a solid foundation for the moving figure.

F. John Adams, 1800
Oil on canvas, 29 x 24 inches.
National Gallery of Art, Washington



G. John Adams, 1823
Oil on canvas, 30 x 25 inches.
Museum of Fine Arts, BostonThese two portraits of the Second President, separated by almost a quarter-century, represent the art of Gilbert Stuart at its finest. The 1800 portrait is remarkable for its simplicity and "American plainness." It coincides with what we know of Adams from the historical record—strong, confident, opinionated. The 1823 portrait sensitively captures Adams at the close of his long life.

H. Thomas Jefferson (The Medallion Portrait), 1805
Aqueous medium on paper.
18 inches

One of the emotional thrills of the Metropolitan Museum Gilbert Stuart exhibit was the powerful sense of history the visitor received, strolling through galleries peopled with the great characters of a remarkable historical era. Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, John Jay—the names are essential to the formative American drama, and here they all were, calmly looking out from their gilded frames.

I. Josiah Quincy, 1824
Oil on canvas, 36 x 24 inches.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

The portrait of Josiah Quincy of Boston provided perhaps the greatest jolt of pure realism in the exhibition. The painting of the head is a marvel of straightforward simplicity. The colors and values are so exquisitely perceived, the edges so delicately achieved, that the sense of a very real human being grips the viewer.