Jonathan Pinkney, Jr.
1798
Medium
Watercolor on ivory
Dimensions
3 1/8 x 2 1/2 in. (7.9 x 6.4 cm)
Classification
Painting, miniature
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1925
Accession Number
25.117.1
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late 18th century, Peale, a prominent American artist and brother to the famed portraitist Charles Willson Peale crafted intimate miniatures like *Jonathan Pinkney, Jr.* (1798). This delicate watercolor on ivory captures the young sitter in a formal pose, emblematic of the Federal era's emerging American identity. Peale, active in Philadelphia's vibrant artistic scene, specialized in these small-scale portraits, blending European traditions with a distinctly national sensibility during the young republic's formative years. The medium—watercolor on ivory—is key to its allure. Ivory's sm...
About the Artist
James Peale
James Peale was an American painter born in 1749, the younger brother of the more famous Charles Willson Peale, and a member of one of the most remarkable artistic families in the history of American art. Trained largely by his brother, James worked for many years in Charles Willson's shadow, assisting with portraits and miniatures in the Philadelphia studio before developing his own independent p...