Man with Red Book (Portrait of a Man)
Attributed to
Micah Williams
(American, 1782 - 1837)
Dateca. 1821
MediumPastel on tan paper mounted to a strainer
DimensionsUnframed: 25 15/16 × 21 7/8 inches (65.88 × 55.56 cm)
Credit LinePurchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust
Object number33-44
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionHalf-length portrait of man with white stock and blue coat holding a red book.Gallery LabelFolk portraitist Micah Williams created striking portraits using pastels
he made himself. With this limited palette, Williams aligned his portraits’
colors to his sitters’ eyes. Here the man’s fair skin and light eyes complement
a greenish background and brilliant blue vest. Williams mounted his
compositions with local newspapers, which suggest where and when his works were
made. The back of this portrait is lined with a page from an 1821 newspaper
from Trenton, New Jersey.
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