After paying a visit to the Huston museum of fine arts, the experience was a real eye-opener as to the actual magnificence of American and foreign literature. The items on the exhibition stands were far too many and therefore the chosen art that most capture the imagination is a painting of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart that appears on all American one dollar bills. The picture was done in the year 1797 just as America's first president was stepping down from the presidency. The portrait has been done by carefully applying varied shades of grey black and white paint to the effect that it not only shows the facial representation of the subject but also a hint of the personality of America's first president. The portrait is in perfectly good condition with a smooth surface displayed in hand-carved giltwood rectangular frame, and the face appears inside an oval porthole. The picture is shown in the radicals and revolutionaries gallery which is covered in purple paint on the walls and has bright lights illuminated by many hanging lamps. The purpose of this article is to give a detailed description of the arts observed and enjoyed in the museum of fine arts Houston.
The first apparent visual element is the use of a combination of light and dark tones to denote the discontinuity between flesh and the subject's surrounding. The lighter shade has been used to indicate the mood while the slightly darker tones (grey to be exact) show the subject's surrounding and setting. The darker tones are expressly used to bring out the outfit of the president and in combination cast a cautious and composed as expressed by the subject. The careful use of tone enabled the expression of vibrancy yet calm and collected appearance in the portrait. It is also the tone that is well brought out when the picture is used on the US 1 dollar bill to depict a respectable statesman man but not an aristocrat.
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The second visual element is the choice of color for the portrait. Color is an essential part of a photo that needs keen attention to detail for with it one may make or ruin the intended effect of the picture. The color chosen for the portrait consists of a mixture of muted and crisp shades of grey, white and black. The black color is used to paint the clothes the subject is wearing, a combination of grey shading and white is used to create the discontinuity between flesh and the surroundings. The color can be described as useful in managing to bring out the features of the subject while at the same time demonstrate the era's style of painting.
The third design principle is the texture used in the photo. Gilbert Stuart chose to use a smooth texture to suggest comfort and ease in conjunction with the curved and horizontal lines which may also suggest distance and calm, a description most associated with the founding father. These characteristics mean that the portrait is only two dimensional and quite appealing to the eye. One would guess that it is no wonder that the portrait is used on the United States one dollar bill.
The unfinished portrait is a fine demonstration of the fervor that emerged for the possession of images of the founding fathers in the aftermath of the revolutionary wars when America established itself as an independent nation. The portrait is an idealized image in which George Washington appears tall and proud depicting him as almost a mythical hero. The style used is typical of Gilbert Stuart at this time as he capitalized on the clamor of the American public for the images of the leaders of the nascent regime. The unfinished portrait also show painters of gilbert's fame could be overzealous thereby ending up not fulfilling their contracts in the process, something that also featured in his management of funds that left him heavily indebted.
