Show the nations greatest son T 7 7 aa M 4 I 1 Vs e 1 V ia n va 7 A Z I 1 ua 4 R Z 0 p LA I 1 this portrait of george washington highly possession po selon ot marshall Mart liall solberg ChI chicago caffas Is I 1 claimed by him to have been pointed painted b by y gilbert stuart it bears bear th the year 1794 ind and it is signed by the master in an inconspicuous way some have thought that the earnest earliest stuart t W washington F as hinston was wai painted in 1795 but tuch such Is ii not the case for or john jay save gave gilbert stuart a letter to washington which stuart delivered w while h I 1 la congress was waa in session in the year 1794 and stuart refers to this in correspondence with relative it was then that one of the ahr three a sitting fittings occurred there were many portraits portrait of george washington painted by gilbert stuart but there were only three sittings so BO that many no Y of the portraits were copied by stuart from either completed pictures or sketches it was of 0 course rot not entirely unusual for great painters to make preliminary sketches of their subjects although althou fb they did on many occasions am alons entirely complete their paintings at sittings sitting this latter procedure was followed it Is thought by gilbert stuart in this portrait if I 1 this Is so it stands unique among the stuart according to a volume in mr kolbergs solberga Sol berga bergs library gilbert stuart admired this picture so much that he retained it himself and would would not part with it for or many years thereafter when it landed in the hard bands of congressmen congressman gilbert of western new york he be loved it so much h that he asked that it might be the last object for him to sue gaze upon in this life |