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.74.39.15.19
Tags
Art Historical Context
In 1808, French-born artist Charles Balth Julien Févret de-Mémin captured the likeness of Walter Herron a prominent businessperson, this striking profile print. Saint-Mémin, who fled the French Revolution and settled in America, revolutionized portrait with his innovative "physiognotrace" device—a mechanical pantograph that traced subjects' profiles with precision onto paper. He then hand-colored the outlines and produced engraved prints, making elegant, affordable likenesses accessible to the emerging American middle class during the early Republic era. This work exemplifies Saint-Mémin's si...