Portrait of a Man

c. 1850

John Plumbe Jr.

Associated Names
John Plumbe Jr.

Artist, American, born Wales, 1809 - 1857

The image shows a man seated in a formal posture with his left arm resting on an upholstered armrest. He gazes directly at the camera with a calm yet attentive expression. His facial features include deep-set eyes, a broad nose, and lips that are closed in a neutral line. His hair is short, slightly curled, and neatly styled. He is dressed in a suit comprising a dark jacket over a plaid vest and a white shirt underneath, complemented by a light-colored bow tie. He wears a ring on his left hand's pinky finger. The backdrop is plain, focusing attention on the subject within a case featuring a maroon and gold border.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    daguerreotype with applied color

  • Credit Line

    Alfred H. Moses and Fern M. Schad Fund

  • Dimensions

    image (visible): 6.7 × 5.5 cm (2 5/8 × 2 3/16 in.)
    mat: 8.1 × 6.9 cm (3 3/16 × 2 11/16 in.)
    case (closed): 9.2 × 8 × 1.7 cm (3 5/8 × 3 1/8 × 11/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2017.35.1


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

George Whiteley, Atlanta, GA; NGA purchase, 2017.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2019

  • The Eye of the Sun: Nineteenth-Century Photographs from the National Gallery of Art, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2019, unnumbered catalogue.

Inscriptions

on brass mat, bottom right embossed: PLUMBE

Wikidata ID

Q64156070

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