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DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER
805 KIDDER BREESE SE -- WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
WASHINGTON DC 20374-5060

Photo # NH 1883:  Commodore John Barry.  Portrait by Gilbert Stuart

Online Library of Selected Images
-- ART TOPICS -- ARTISTS

Gilbert Stuart (1755-1828)

Gilbert Stuart, one of the great portrait artists of the late colonial era and the early Republic, was born in Rhode Island on 3 December 1755. His talents surfacing at an early age, the young man was an assistant to Scottish painter Cosmo Alexander in 1769-1771, then worked by himself in New England until moving to England in 1775. While residing in London, Stuart was a pupil of the American artist Benjamin West and later developed a considerable reputation for his portraits of notable persons. He lived and worked in Ireland from 1787 to 1793, then returned to America.

Initially practicing his craft in New York, Stuart went on to the Nation's temporary capital city, Philadelphia, in 1794 and there made several famous, and much reproduced, portraits of President George Washington. Many other leading figures of the day sat for Stuart, both in Philadelphia and in Washington, D.C., where he moved late in 1803. In mid-1805, the artist went to Boston and remained active there as a very influential portraitist and teacher until shortly before his death on 9 July 1828.

This page provides links to photographs of artworks by or attributed to Gilbert Stuart, and to artworks derived from his work.


If you want higher resolution reproductions than the "Online Library's" digital images, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions."


The following artworks were created by Gilbert Stuart:


The following artworks have been attributed to Gilbert Stuart:


The following artworks are derived from works by Gilbert Stuart:


If you want higher resolution reproductions than the Online Library's digital images, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions."


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Page made 13 September 2002
New images added 15 March 2003