Portrait of a Man
Medium
watercolor on ivory in a gold and seed pearl frame
Dimensions
unframed: 6.2 × 4.5 cm · framed: 7.1 × 5.5 cm
Classification
Portrait Miniature
Department
European Painting and Sculpture
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
The Edward B. Greene Collection
Accession Number
1943.651
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
About this artwork
This unknown sitter has remarkably light blue eyes, a ruddy complexion, and powdered hair worn en queue. He wears a brown coat with a white cravat and waistcoat. The background is muddy brown. The miniature is housed in its original gold frame, which is set with genuine half pearls. This man was painted in 1789 when John Smart was working in Madras, India. He is probably a Madras civil servant or merchant. This work is typical of Smart’s portraits of nonmilitary gentlemen living in India. Two ot...