Gilbert Stuart
(North Kingstown, Rhode Island, 1755 - 1828, Boston, Massachusetts)
Title
Portrait of James Madison
Creation Date
ca. 1805-1807
Century
early 19th century
Dimensions
48 1/2 in. x 39 3/4 in. (123.19 cm x 100.97 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Creation Place
North America, United States
Medium and Support
oil on canvas
Credit Line
Bequest of the Honorable James Bowdoin III
Copyright
Public Domain
Accession Number
1813.54
In this portrait of Secretary of State James Madison, painted as a companion to Thomas Jefferson, seen nearby, the leader of a new democratic nation is solemnly depicted without the trappings of royalty or aristocracy. Like his fellow Virginian Jefferson, Madison is considered a Founding Father of the United States, and helped to draft the Constitution. A brilliant political theorist, he helped ensure the Constitution’s ratification by the States by outlining the amendments found in the Bill of Rights. His ideas of liberty, however, did not extend to the hundreds of enslaved men, women, and children who labored on his plantation Montpelier in Orange County, Virginia.
Object Description
October 2010: This portrait of James Madison, like its counterpart of Thomas Jefferson, includes a French-style armchair.
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