Seth Hastings
Medium
mezzotint and engraving in black on wove paper mounted to brown wove paper
Dimensions
image (irregular): 5.56 × 5.56 cm (2 3/16 × 2 3/16 in.) sheet (trimmed to plate): 6.83 × 6.19 cm (2 11/16 × 2 7/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Corcoran Collection (Gift of William Wilson Corcoran)
Accession Number
2015.19.1584.34.1
Rights
Public Domain
Art Historical Context
Created in 1806 by French-born artist Charles B. J. Févret de Saint-Mémin, this intimate portrait captures Seth Hastings in a compact format typical of early American printmaking Saint-Mémin, who worked extensively in the United States, specialized in profile likenesses that combined scientific precision with artistic refinement, often using a physiognotrace device to trace contours before translating them into print. The work’s medium—mezzotint and engraving on wove paper—allowed the artist to achieve rich tonal gradations and fine detail within a remarkably small image measuring just over two inches square. Mounted on a secondary sheet, the print’s trimmed edges and delicate execution reflect the careful craftsmanship of the period, when such portraits served as affordable keepsakes or records of notable individuals. Now part of the National Gallery of Art’s Corcoran Collection, this piece offers a window into early nineteenth-century American portraiture and the transatlantic exchange of artistic techniques that shaped the young nation’s visual culture.
About the Artist
Charles B. J. Févret de Saint-Mémin · 1770–1852
**Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin** Born on March 12, 1770, in Dijon, France, to marquis Bénigne-Charles Févret de Saint-Mémin, a former conseiller au Parlement de Bourgogne, and Victoire-Marie de Motmans, a creole from Port-au-Prince, Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin received a military education at the École Militaire in Paris, graduating in 1785. He served as a cad...