Major-General Henry Dearborn

Gilbert Stuart's "Major-General Henry Dearborn" (1812) is an oil on mahogany panel portrait of one of the most important military and political figures of the early American republic. Henry Dearborn (1751–1829) served as a general in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, later served as Secretary of War under President Thomas Jefferson, and was the senior major general of the U.S. Army during the War of 1812. Stuart (1755–1828) was the preeminent portraitist of the early United States, best known for his portraits of George Washington. This portrait of Dearborn shows him in his military uniform, bearing the dignity and authority appropriate to his rank and service. Stuart's technique is characterized by his fluid brushwork, his ability to capture a likeness with economy and directness, and his sensitivity to the character of his sitters. The mahogany panel was a support that Stuart sometimes used for smaller portraits, its smooth surface allowing for precise detail. This portrait is both a document of American history and a work of art that captures the character of one of the founders of the American republic.

Stuart's portraits of the founders of the American republic are among the most important visual documents of the early United States, shaping the way we imagine the figures who shaped the nation's history.

This portrait of General Henry Dearborn captures both the military dignity of its subject and the technical mastery of America's greatest early portraitist, the oil on panel technique allowing for precise detail and psychological depth.