Portrait of Henry Clay
Walter G. Gould (1829–1893), after John Neagle, signed lower left
Philadelphia, circa 1845 - Frame: 39 x 34 inches; sight 36½ x 26½ inches
 
A finely executed full-length portrait of Henry Clay by Walter G. Gould, after John Neagle’s celebrated 1843 likeness painted from life. Depicted before a monumental column and draped American flag, with maritime and industrial emblems beyond, Clay is presented in one of the most enduring visual formulations of his public image, at once statesman, nationalist, and architect of American prosperity. Gould’s interpretation skillfully preserves the clarity and theatrical authority of Neagle’s original while translating the composition with notable sensitivity and control.
 
Neagle’s original portrait, among the most iconic images of Clay produced in his lifetime, remains in the collection of the Union League of Philadelphia, while another period version is preserved at the U.S. Capitol. Executed while Gould was still in Philadelphia and likely before his departure for Europe in 1849, the present work is an early and accomplished example by the artist, whose American portraits are considerably rarer than the Orientalist pictures that later established his reputation abroad. A label from Berry-Hill Galleries is preserved to the reverse.
 
Condition: Very fine; relined and mounted on a new stretcher, with scattered in-painting.