GENERAL DESCRIPTION
When wealthy Philadelphia merchant Paul Beck, Jr., decided to commission portraits of himself and his second wife, Mary Harvey, the choice of Thomas Sully was an obvious one. Every detail, from the curve of the sofa on which Mrs. Beck's arm rests to her high-waisted gown and curls à la grecque, as well as the neutral background, reveals Sully's mastery of the neoclassical taste so popular in Federal Philadelphia.
Two years earlier, fresh from studies with Gilbert Stuart in Boston and Sir Thomas Lawrence in London, the young artist had caused a sensation in Philadelphia. Sully's rapid execution and sheer facility with the brush made him the toast of the town-and the successor to the elderly Gilbert Stuart, who had previously been the splashiest, finest portraitist available in the young republic.
Excerpt from
William Keyse Rudolph, DMA label text, 2006.
NOTES
Created in 1813
Object File reviewed
Artist born Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England
Died Philadelphia
According to Christie's: Mary Harvey was the second wife of Paul Beck, Jr. Sully records that he began Mrs. Beck's portrait on April 23, 1813 and finished it on June 8, 1813, at a price of $100. A companion portrait (private collection) of Mr. Beck (Biddle and Fielding, no. 106) was begun on April 2, 1813 and finished on September 6, 1813 at a price of $100.
No Provenance entered in TMS until resolved.
According to Christie's:
1813: Paul Beck Jr., Philadelphia, PA
n.d.: Henry Paul Beck, by inheritance
n.d.: Henry Dwight Beck, by inheritance
n.d.: John B. Webster
n.d.: Kennedy Galleries, Inc., New York
n.d.: The Virginia Steele Scott Foundation, Pasadena HOW DID IT GET FROM HERE TO DMA? WHAT ABOUT DONATION TO HUNTINGTON?
From 1989: Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the Pauline Allen Gill Foundation
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Sully, Thomas (British born American, 1783-1872)
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Philadelphia (Pennsylvania/United States): TGN: 7014406
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
UMO: 264288051 Learn About Thomas Sully (1783-1872)
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
- Paul Beck Jr. by Thomas Sully~View Thomas Sully's companion portrait of Mary Harvey's husband, Paul Beck Jr., at the Huntington Art Collection.
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 1989.100
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General Description
When wealthy Philadelphia merchant Paul Beck, Jr., decided to commission portraits of himself and his second wife, Mary Harvey, the choice of Thomas Sully was an obvious one. Every detail, from the curve of the sofa on which Mrs. Beck's arm rests to her high-waisted gown and curls à la grecque, as well as the neutral background, reveals Sully's mastery of the neoclassical taste so popular in Federal Philadelphia.
Two years earlier, fresh from studies with Gilbert Stuart in Boston and Sir Thomas Lawrence in London, the young artist had caused a sensation in Philadelphia. Sully's rapid execution and sheer facility with the brush made him the toast of the town-and the successor to the elderly Gilbert Stuart, who had previously been the splashiest, finest portraitist available in the young republic.
Excerpt from
William Keyse Rudolph, DMA label text, 2006.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- Paul Beck Jr. by Thomas Sully~View Thomas Sully's companion portrait of Mary Harvey's husband, Paul Beck Jr., at the Huntington Art Collection.
Notes
Created in 1813
Object File reviewed
Artist born Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England
Died Philadelphia
According to Christie's: Mary Harvey was the second wife of Paul Beck, Jr. Sully records that he began Mrs. Beck's portrait on April 23, 1813 and finished it on June 8, 1813, at a price of $100. A companion portrait (private collection) of Mr. Beck (Biddle and Fielding, no. 106) was begun on April 2, 1813 and finished on September 6, 1813 at a price of $100.
No Provenance entered in TMS until resolved.
According to Christie's:
1813: Paul Beck Jr., Philadelphia, PA
n.d.: Henry Paul Beck, by inheritance
n.d.: Henry Dwight Beck, by inheritance
n.d.: John B. Webster
n.d.: Kennedy Galleries, Inc., New York
n.d.: The Virginia Steele Scott Foundation, Pasadena HOW DID IT GET FROM HERE TO DMA? WHAT ABOUT DONATION TO HUNTINGTON?
From 1989: Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the Pauline Allen Gill Foundation
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Sully, Thomas (British born American, 1783-1872)
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Philadelphia (Pennsylvania/United States): TGN: 7014406
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
UMO: 264288051 Learn About Thomas Sully (1783-1872)
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
Apply To
Objects
number
Equals
1989.100
source file
object_notes_1_b-0043.xml.nores