Gilbert Stuart's Lansdowne Portrait of George Washington: A Semiotic Representation of American Leadership and Analysis of Leadership Values Through A Portrait of the First President

GILBERT STUART'S LANSDOWNE PORTRAIT OF GEORGE WASHINGTON: A SEMIOTIC REPRESENTATION OF AMERICAN LEADERSHIP AND ANALYSIS OF LEADERSHIP VALUES THROUGH A PORTRAIT OF THE FIRST PRESIDENT

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Gilbert Stuart's Lansdowne Portrait of George Washington (1796) is rife with symbolism absent from most of Stuart's other portraits of Washington, which is made possible through the use of displaying Washington's entire figure inside his presidential office. The life-size (8 by 5 feet) portrait presents the first president renouncing a third-term, which is significant because it defines American succession of leadership in contrast to other heads-of-state at the time that typically remained in power for life. The open window behind Washington shows dark clouds giving way to a rainbow, and additional elements such as Washington's decorative (as opposed to militaristic) sword favors diplomacy over force. As a commissioned work, the portrait reveals how early leadership wished to convey the values of the newly formed United States, including the value of succession of leadership, and diplomacy.

Biography

Gilbert Stuart is a well known artist whose most artistic works have made him to be considered as America`s leading portraitists. His work mainly concentrated on the American presidents with the Lansdowne Portrait of George Washington (1796) being one of his most renowned portraits. Gilbert Stuart was born in Stewart in 1755 and died in 1828^[1] (27). Through his career, Gilbert Stuart produced portraits of more than one thousand people counting the first six presidents of America. Gilbert possessed natural talent in painting and used it as a passion in representing the likeness of humans and their character ^[2] (28). The legacy of his work in art has been defined by the element of contradiction in most of his works. Just like many artists of his time, Gilbert had many portraits that he did not finish although the portraits that he finished have been considered masterpieces up-to-date. Gilbert was sanctimonious and this was one of the main major aspects that led to the production of renowned portraits. Unlike most artists of his time such as John singleton and Benjamin West, Gilbert maintained that the success of his work was not in any way associated with the character of the sitter but was largely based on his abilities as an artist.  

Subject Matter

In the portrait, George Washington, the first president of America poses in full posture with some few objects next to him. Many of the objects that have been included in the portrait did not exist at the time but Gilbert chose them in conveying specific ideas to the audience. The objects that surround George Washington serve as figurative symbols of the public life of the president and his dedication to serve the country being the first president. The rainbow on the background of the portrait has been used to symbolize that the storms that the country was facing had faded away and that a new dawn was being welcomed. George Washington’s position of his hand also is meant to show how the president had made several milestones in the service for his country. The portrait was made a time when America was struggling in getting to its feet after independence and at the time, George Washington had made several strides in helping the American people ^[3] (59). This was the last year of his term as a president, and his standing position shows that despite the challenges that his country had faced, George Washington had worked hard in serving the Americans. According to history, George Washington disliked posing for pictures and by Gilbert creating a portrait showing him posing is an indication that the president was celebrating his life of service for the Americans.

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