John Jay by Stuart, Gilbert

This is Gilbert Stuart's 1794 portrait of John Jay, now in the National Gallery of Art. It was painted during a hinge moment in American history: Jay was Chief Justice, and within weeks of these sittings he would sail to London to negotiate the treaty that bears his name.

Look closely at what he is wearing. The black judicial gown underneath is what you would expect from the nation's highest judge. But the vivid scarlet robe on top is something else entirely, Jay specifically asked Stuart to paint him in the robes Harvard College gave him with an honorary degree. The painting layers scholar over judge, deliberately.

Stuart had just returned to New York after eighteen years in England and Ireland, and Jay was one of the few people he knew. This commission was a lifeline. Its success helped Stuart attract the wealthy New York clientele that rebuilt his American career, setting the stage for his later portraits of Washington.

A man at the height of his power, posing not in the uniform of that power, but in the robes of the mind. What would you choose to be painted in?