Gilbert Stuart, The Skater

0:00Dr. Beth Harris: We're in the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., looking at what I think of as an iconic American painting. Dr. Bryan Zygmont: This portrait of William Grant, commonly called the Skater, was a turning point in the career of Gilbert Stuart. Prior to this, Stuart's career was one that was a bit uneven. Stuart was born in 1755 in what would later be Rhode Island. And when a young man, 20 years old, he went to London to seek his artistic fortune.

0:37After a couple of years, he was destitute, he was alone, and he wrote a letter to Benjamin West asking for help. And Benjamin West, being the incredibly good natured man he was, brought Stuart into his home, provided him with some art teaching, and within a couple of years, it seems clear to me that Stuart had far surpassed his teacher in the art of portraiture.

1:02Dr. Beth Harris: And this is such an unusual portrait for the simple fact that the figure is shown skating. Dr. Bryan Zygmont: One of Stuart's great gifts was not only depicting what a sitter looked like, which, of course, is one of the goals of portraiture, but he was able to imbue his portraits with a kind of personality. And certainly this image of a young Scottish lawyer ice skating is unique in the history of British art. Dr. Beth Harris: So we might notice the arms folded across the chest, but this was a very common way for figures to hold their upper body while they were skating, so it wasn't at all unusual. But it's the way he turns his shoulders one way, his head another. It's just a figure that is so filled with movement,

1:50but movement that seems so natural and so graceful. Dr. Bryan Zygmont: You took my word. It is an image of grace and almost effortlessness as he glides across this frozen lake on his way towards the viewer. Dr. Beth Harris: The light is so carefully considered, how one side of his face is in shadow, the other side is fully illuminated. We have this curve of his hat, the curve of his arms, the curve of that tree behind him, the landscape that seems to also move from the right to the left, the way that the figure does. Everything about this fits together so perfectly. Dr. Bryan Zygmont: There's very little color in this composition, and yet it has a kind of vibrancy and life to it. Dr. Beth Harris: To me, those blacks and grays suggest a

2:38kind of sophistication, someone who is very fashionable, clearly a member of the upper classes. Dr. Bryan Zygmont: Stuart's career after this painting was entirely different. In 1782, he was still living and working with Benjamin West. The year following this, he had one of the most fashionable portrait studios in all of London. In the years that followed, he departed for Dublin, where he painted the Protestant aristocracy for a number of years, but his goal was always to return to the United States. And when he did, he had one major objective.

3:14He wanted to paint the first President of the United States. And paint George Washington, he did. Not dozens, but scores of times. And perhaps the most famous image in the history of American art is his portrait of George Washington that now sits on the American dollar bill.

3:32Dr. Beth Harris: What we see in this portrait is an artist who has clearly absorbed all of the lessons of the Renaissance, of ancient Greek and Roman sculpture. Dr. Bryan Zygmont: When we look at this image, it's easy to imagine the Apollo Belvedere, an image that Stuart would have known through reproductions through his time studying with Benjamin West.

3:51Dr. Beth Harris: The silvery colors suggest snow and ice and this cold winter day. And in fact, some art historians have seen this painting as an allegory of winter as much as it is a portrait. And our eye goes to the two well dressed figures in the middle ground on the right and two other figures, one of whom is tying his skate, the other group of figures who seem so joyous in their skating. But our eye, thanks to the composition, is always drawn back to William Grant's face and what feels to me like his youth and his self composure and self assuredness. Dr. Bryan Zygmont: It's clear that this is a cold day and yet the face of William Grant seems to have a kind of warmth and vibrancy about it.

4:39When this painting was shown at the 1782 Royal Academy show, Gilbert Stuart was, for all intents, an unknown artist. But as the decades moved on, Stuart became the most accomplished portrait painter in the history of the United States.