Currently not on view
George Washington,
ca. 1817
Person depicted: George Washington, American, 1732–1799
formerly attributed to Jean-Antoine Houdon, 1741–1828; born Versailles, France; died Paris, France
More Context
Special Exhibition
William Rush, America’s first major sculptor, knew George Washington personally and claimed to have sketched him from life to create this work. Portraits of Washington were in great demand, but, seeking to distance himself from the self-promotion typically associated with monarchs, the first president was notoriously unwilling to pose for artists. Works that were based on sittings thus gained a particularly authoritative voice in characterizing the man—and, by extension, the nascent American republic. Rush cast this bust in plaster after a terracotta original, creating multiple copies to meet popular demand. Likely the only surviving replica directly produced by the artist, it is believed to have belonged to Thomas Jefferson and thus is evidence of the close network of relationships among early American influencers. It is to the tradition of portraits such as this example that Titus Kaphar, whose work is on view nearby, responds.
Information
ca. 1817
formerly attributed to Jean-Antoine Houdon, 1741–1828; born Versailles, France; died Paris, France
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<p>D. D. Egbert, "A bust of washington owned by Jefferson", <em>Record of the Museum of Historic Art, Princeton University</em> 6, no. 1/2 (1947): p. 3-5.</p>, p. 3-5
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Donald D. Egbert, <em>Princeton Portraits,</em> (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1947)., fig. 222, pp 317-329
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Allen Rosenbaum and Francis F. Jones,<em> Selections from The Art Museum, Princeton University, </em>(Princeton, NJ: The Art Museum, Princeton University, 1986), p. 271 (illus.)
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<em>Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collection</em> (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2007), 331 (illus.)
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<em>Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collections </em>(Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Art Museum, 2013), p. 201
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