Two Figure Compositions for the Painting "The Republican Court" (Lady Washington's Reception Day)
Medium
figures
Classification
figures
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Bequest of Erskine Hewitt
Accession Number
1942-50-187
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Daniel Huntington, a prominent American painter (1816–1906), created these *Two Figure Compositions* in1860 as preparatory studies for his grand historical canvas, *The Republican Court (Lady Washington's Reception Day)* Rendered in figures—likely sketches or oil studies—these works capture posed groupings of elegantly attired figures, evoking the formal social gatherings hosted by Martha Washington in Philadelphia during the early 1790s. At a time when the young United States was forging its national identity, Huntington's vision romanticized the nation's founding era, blending portraiture wi...