Medium
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon
Accession Number
S/NPG.74.39.4.40
Tags
Art Historical Context
This elegant 1802 print portrays John Reynolds, captured in profile by French-born artist Charles Balthazar Julienévret de Saint-Mmin (1770–1852). Saint-Mémin, who fled the French Revolution and settled in America, revolutionized portraiture with his innovative "physiognotrace" device—a mechanical pantograph that traced precise silhouettes against a backlight. These outlines were then engraved on copper plates and hand-printed, often with subtle coloring, making high-quality likenesses affordable for the early American elite. Created during the early Federal period, when national identity was...