Nathaniel Allen
Artist
John Singleton Copley
(American, 1738–1815)
Date1763
GeographyBoston, Massachusetts, USA
GeographyLondon, U.K. (died)
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions50 x 40 in. (127 x 101.6 cm)
ClassificationsPaintings
Credit LinePurchase, Frank C. Atherton Memorial Fund, 1976 (4376.1)
Object number4376.1
DescriptionA three-quarter length and three-quarter pose realistic depiction of a substantial Gloucester merchant, with two tufted moles on his right cheek. The sitter wears a powdered wig tied with ribbon, a simple shirt with ruffled cuffs, and a coat with brass buttons, matching piped vest and brass-buckled breeches. He is seated beside a highly polished reflecting table, on which are symbols of his trade — his ledger and correspondence.Copley has deliberately restricted the palette to the warm dark green background and brighter green ribbon in the foreground; the deep red-browns of the clothing and wood; the yellow-browns of ledger and brass; the flesh tones with red shadows, with the red repeated in the ledger label and sealing wax; and the white of shirt and paper.
On View
On viewCollections
Anonymous
Mid-late 12th century
Late 19th- early 20th C.
