Media Alert: “Lansdowne” Portrait of George Washington On View Until Feb. 28

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The museum is counting down the days before Gilbert Stuart’s iconic “Lansdowne” portrait of George Washington temporarily goes off view. Now is the time for visitors to see the work before it is sent to a conservation lab for about 18 months. The portrait is on view through Feb. 28.

The Lansdowne has been on view in the museum since it opened in 1968, on long-term loan before the Portrait Gallery acquired the portrait in 2001 through the generosity of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. More than 1.2 million visitors view the artwork annually, and it remains a treasure of the American people.

The painting has been conserved in the past and is in stable condition; however, a yellowed varnish currently disguises the original brilliance of the portrait. Conservationists will clean the Lansdowne, and, for the first time since acquiring the painting, it will undergo a complete analysis using digital X-rays, infrared reflectography and ultraviolet light.

The painting’s conservation is being funded by Bank of America.

This artwork serves as the centerpiece of the Portrait Gallery’s permanent exhibition “America’s Presidents.” Stuart, one of America’s most talented portrait artists of the early national period, created the painting in 1796, during Washington’s second term in office. The Lansdowne portrait visually defined the image Washington sought for the new national government, especially the new office of the presidency. It symbolizes that the president was not a king who gained power by inheritance but instead was elected by the people.

Note to the media: Photography, recording and interviews will be available before Sunday, Feb. 28 upon request to the press office. Please contact alvarezma@si.edu.  

National Portrait Gallery

The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery tells the multifaceted story of America through the individuals who have shaped its culture. Through the visual arts, performing arts and new media, the Portrait Gallery portrays poets and presidents, visionaries and villains, actors and activists whose lives tell the American story.

The National Portrait Gallery is part of the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture at Eighth and F streets N.W., Washington, D.C. Smithsonian Information: (202) 633-1000. Website: npg.si.edu. Connect with the museum at @NPG, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Tumblr.

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SI-43-2016