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Title details for The Painter and the President by Sarah Albee - Available

The Painter and the President

Gilbert Stuart's Brush with George Washington

by Sarah Albee
Stacy Innerst
Audiobook
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George Washington hates sitting for portraits, but it's the late eighteenth century and cameras have yet to be invented. The president understands that a great portrait is the best way to be remembered by future generations. And who better to help secure Washington's place in history than Gilbert Stuart, the most talented portrait painter of his day? For his part, Stuart knows that his own name will go down in history if he can paint an exceptional portrait of Washington.
Sarah Albee tells the story of how Gilbert Stuart's most famous portrait—the image that appears on the one-dollar bill—came to be. Despite clashing personalities and several setbacks—including Washington's swollen, aching mouth caused by ill-fitting false teeth—the painter managed to create a portrait of the president that endures to this day.
"The Painter and the President spotlights the relationship between America's first president and Gilbert Stuart, one of the many artists who tried to capture his image on canvas. By the time of Washington's presidency, Stuart had made a fine reputation as a portraitist. Although many of his subjects loved sitting for him, the laconic George Washington was not one of them. Sarah Albee and Stacy Innerst cleverly celebrate this relationship by looking at the many ways the painter tried in order to get a true portrait of America's first president."—Mary V. Thompson, research historian emerita, George Washington's Mount Vernon

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    September 17, 2024

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9798894861494
      • File size: 8014 KB
      • Duration: 00:16:41

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from September 2, 2024
      Albee and Innerst wittily render the backstory of the portrait of George Washington (1732–1799) that graces the U.S. one-dollar bill. Premier American portraitist Gilbert Stuart (1755–1828) wields a “dancing brush” that “captures the very soul of the person he is painting,” but his initial encounter with the president left much to be desired by both parties. Washington begrudgingly agrees to give Stuart another chance, though the president would “rather sit on a horse than sit in a chair,” and considers Stuart an “infernal chatterbox.” The two men share an understanding of “the power of art” to capture not just likeness but legacy, and when Stuart sees Washington looking delightedly at a horse, conversation fodder is found and a famous portrait is born. Elegantly economic, always accessible prose gives a sense of the era’s decorum, while sculptural acrylic, pencil, and digital artwork captures both the artistic process and the wrangling of two unique historical personalities. Secondary characters are portrayed with pale skin. Ages 7–10.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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