St. Paul Shaking off the Viper
Benjamin West
n.d.
Medium
Pen and brown ink with brush and tan wash, on cream laid paper with blue fibers tipped onto cream wove paper
Dimensions
30.4 × 37.6 cm (12 × 14 13/16 in.)
Classification
pen and ink drawings
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
86477
About the Artist
Benjamin West · 1738–1820
Benjamin West, born on October 10, 1738, in Springfield, Pennsylvania, emerged as one of the most influential painters of his era despite being entirely self-taught. Growing up in a Quaker family in colonial America, West displayed prodigious talent from childhood, creating portraits and religious scenes with materials gifted by local patrons. By his late teens, he had garnered enough support to t...