Edward Savage - The Washington Family - Google Art Project

Edward Savage (November 26, 1761,

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

– July 6, 1817, Princeton, Massachusetts) was an American portrait painter and engraver.

Life and career

He was born in Princeton, Massachusetts, and at first worked as a goldsmith, also practicing engraving. Although seemingly untrained in painting, he came into prominence in 1790 through his portrait of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

, intended as a gift to

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. In 1791 he visited

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where he studied for a time under

Benjamin West Benjamin West, (October 10, 1738 – March 11, 1820) was a British-American artist who painted famous historical scenes such as '' The Death of Nelson'', ''The Death of General Wolfe'', the '' Treaty of Paris'', and '' Benjamin Franklin Drawin ...

, and then went to Italy. Upon his return to the United States in 1794, he practiced in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, maintaining for several years a picture gallery and art museum on Water Street in New York.

Robert Edge Pine Robert Edge Pine (1730, London – November 18, 1788, Philadelphia) was an English people, English portrait and historical painter, born in London. He was the son of John Pine, the engraver and designer. He painted portraits, such as those of Geor ...

began the first representation of ''Congress Voting Independence'' (Historical Society of Pennsylvania Collection, Atwater Kent Museum, Philadelphia) in 1784, but it was unfinished at his death. Savage completed the painting in 1801, and mass-produced the image as a mezzotint. Its portraits of

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his mil ...

Benjamin Rush Benjamin Rush (April 19, 1813) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States who signed the United States Declaration of Independence, and a civic leader in Philadelphia, where he was a physician, politician, ...

, and

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

are highly esteemed. Savage is principally known, however, for a large portrait group, ''

The Washington Family ''The Washington Family'' by Edward Savage is a life-sized group portrait of the Washington family, including U.S. President George Washington, First Lady Martha Washington, two of her grandchildren and a black servant, most likely an enslave ...

'' (begun 1789, completed 1796), portraying President

, First Lady

Martha Washington Martha Dandridge Custis Washington (June 21, 1731 — May 22, 1802) was the wife of George Washington, the first president of the United States. Although the title was not coined until after her death, Martha Washington served as the inaugural ...

, two of her grandchildren,

George Washington Parke Custis George Washington Parke Custis (April 30, 1781 – October 10, 1857) was an American plantation owner, antiquarian, author, and playwright. His father John Parke Custis was the stepson of George Washington. He and his sister Eleanor grew u ...

and

Eleanor Parke Custis Eleanor Parke Custis may refer to: * Eleanor Parke Custis Lewis (1779–1854), known as Nelly, step-granddaughter of George Washington * Eleanor Parke Custis (artist) (1897–1983), American painter and photographer {{disambig ...

, and an enslaved servant, probably

Christopher Sheels Christopher Sheels (born , Mount Vernon, Virginia – year and place of death unknown), was a slave and house servant at George Washington's plantation, Mount Vernon, in Virginia, United States. As a teenager, he worked as Washington's "body s ...

. The painting was in the collection formed by William F. Havemeyer, New York, until bought by

Andrew Mellon Andrew William Mellon (; March 24, 1855 – August 26, 1937), sometimes A. W. Mellon, was an American banker, businessman, industrialist, philanthropist, art collector, and politician. From the wealthy Mellon family of Pittsburgh, Pennsylva ...

and donated to the

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art, and its attached Sculpture Garden, is a national art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of char ...

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

Publications

* C. H. Hart, in ''Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society'' (Boston, 1905)

References

Sources

* *

External links

American paintings & historical prints from the Middendorf collection
an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Savage (no. 69) People from Princeton, Massachusetts 1761 births 1817 deaths Painters from New York City American goldsmiths American engravers Painters from Massachusetts American portrait painters 18th-century American painters 18th-century American male artists 19th-century American painters 19th-century male artists 18th-century engravers 19th-century engravers 19th-century American printmakers {{US-painter-stub