Three-Way Portrait of Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and Unidentified Native American (William McIntosh?)

Object Details

Artist

Unidentified

Sitter

Thomas Jefferson

unidentified

James Monroe

Luce Center Label

An unknown artist combined three portraits to form this "slat" or three-way painting. He painted images of Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) and James Monroe (1758-1831) back-to-back, divided the canvas into thirty-six strips, and then placed the pieces vertically across a third painting. The three portraits reveal themselves one after the other as the viewer changes position. The identity of the man in the third painting is unclear, but he may be the Coweta chief William McIntosh (1785-1825), who was actively involved in issues of Native American land ownership during Monroe's presidency. By placing McIntosh at the center of the work, the artist suggested he was on equal footing with the two presidents, despite being a generation younger. (O'Malley, "The History and Conservation of an Early 19th-Century Slat Painting," presented at the WAAC annual meeting, 1992)

Credit Line

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. James E. D. Graham and Mr. Thomas E. Dashiell

early 19th century

Object number

1967.90.1

Restrictions & Rights

CC0

Type

Painting

Folk Art

Medium

oil on wood and canvas strips

Dimensions

34 x 29 1/4 x 1 3/4 in. (86.3 x 74.3 x 4.5 cm)

See more items in

Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection

Department

Painting and Sculpture

On View

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 3rd Floor, 14B

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 3rd Floor

Smithsonian American Art Museum

Topic

Indian

Portrait male\bust

Portrait male\bust

Portrait male\bust

Record ID

saam_1967.90.1

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/vk790657411-ad29-4697-a809-ad5e7be07e71