John Taylor Johnston
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
43 1/2 x 33 1/2 in. (110.5 x 85.1 cm)
Classification
Painting
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of John Johnston Appleton, 2006
Accession Number
2006.276
Tags
Art Historical Context
Daniel Huntington’s 1875 portrait of John Taylor Johnston offers a dignified example of late-nineteenth-century American portraiture. Executed in oil on canvas, the medium’s rich textures and subtle tonal gradations allowed Huntington to render the sitter’s features, clothing, and presence with lifelike depth. Measuring roughly 43 by 33 inches, the work invites close viewing, encouraging museum visitors to sense both the individuality of the subject and the formal conventions of the era. As a leading American painter of his generation, Huntington specialized in portraits that documented promi...
About the Artist
Daniel Huntington · 1816–1906
Daniel Huntington (1816–1906) was born into a prominent New York family on October 4, 1816, descending from distinguished New England lineage. His early education began at age fourteen at Smith's Academy in New Haven, followed by Yale College, where he studied with Samuel F. B. Morse, the inventor, artist, and president of the National Academy of Design, in 1835. After a disciplinary incident invo...