Artwork
Edward Stow
Edward Stow is an oil painting by the Romanticist artist Gilbert Stuart. It dates from 1803 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
The portrait of Edward Stow is executed in oil on wood, a support consistent with Gilbert Stuart's practice of working on wooden panels for portrait commissions of this scale. The painted surface measures approximately 74 by 60 centimeters, a modest, intimate format suited to a private likeness rather than a full-length state portrait. Stylistically, the work belongs to Stuart's mature portrait manner of the early 1800s, characterized by restrained handling of the sitter's features and a sober palette.
The medium and panel support have allowed the work to retain its structural stability through successive ownerships, and no condition problems are noted in the records.
History & Provenance
Clarke himself had purchased the portrait at the American Art Association, New York, on 17 January 1922 (lot 27).
Executed in 1803 by Gilbert Stuart, this oil portrait of Edward Stow was painted on wood panel. The work entered the sitter’s family when he gave it to his daughter Louisa Matilda in 1838; it later passed to his sister Caroline Adelaide Stow Hyatt, then to nephew John Phillips, and to the three sisters Edith, Norah and Ann Broadhurst Phillips in Boston. Ann Broadhurst Phillips and cousin Ann Brattle Bascom gifted it to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 1913.
After a 1922 sale to Thomas B. Clarke and a 1936 disposition through Knoedler to the A. W. Mellon Trust, the painting was donated to the National Gallery of Art in 1942.
Edward Stow entered the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., as part of the Andrew W. Mellon Collection, having been gifted to the institution in 1942 by The A. W. Mellon Educational and Charitable Trust of Pittsburgh. The Trust had acquired the painting in 1936 through M. Knoedler & Co., New York, as part of the sale of the Thomas B. Clarke collection. Clarke himself had purchased the portrait at the American Art Association, New York, on 17 January 1922 (lot 27).
Earlier, the work had been donated to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 1913 by Ann Broadhurst Phillips and her cousin Ann Brattle Bascom of Cambridge, Massachusetts, and descended through the sitter's family: given by Stow to his daughter Louisa Matilda Stow in 1838, then to her sister Caroline Adelaide Stow Hyatt of Ithaca, New York, and subsequently to her nephew John Phillips of Brooklyn, New York, whose three sisters in Boston inherited it.
Overview
Gilbert Stuart's oil portrait, Edward Stow, dates to approximately 1803. Executed on a wood panel, this painting captures the likeness of its namesake subject. Stuart was a prominent American portraitist known for his ability to convey individual character through his depictions. This work exemplifies his approach to capturing the human form and presence during the early 19th century.
Subject & Meaning
The portrait presents Edward Stow as a composed figure, his expression conveying a sense of tranquility. He is depicted in period clothing, which contributes to the historical context of the piece. Stuart's focus on individual traits, combined with the realistic rendering of his subject's appearance, aimed to capture not just a physical likeness but also an impression of the sitter's character and demeanor for posterity.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Gilbert Stuart (né Stewart; December 3, 1755 – July 9, 1828) was an American painter born in the Rhode Island Colony who is widely considered one of America's foremost portraitists.
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