GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The portrait of Captain John Pratt owes much to the biographies of both the sitter and the artist. The paper Pratt prominently brandishes in his left hand is his commission from George Washington as captain of the First Regiment of the United States Army (1990.146.2). On his Continental Army uniform, he wears a medal indicating membership in the Society of the Cincinnati, a then-elitist group of veterans. The viewer is thus reminded both of Pratt’s past and his continuing service to his newly founded country.
Conversely, the structure in the background—the town-hall of Middletown, Connecticut—is a reminder of Ralph Earl’s own history and artistic loyalties. Although linked with the portraits Earl painted in Connecticut, the motif is borrowed from topographical landscape paintings of British country houses, which Earl discovered while in England from 1778 to 1785 (loyal to the British cause, Earl left America during the Revolutionary War). Furthermore, the somewhat flat effect of the figure of Pratt relates to Earl’s rejection of the painterly effects of British portraiture, even while he adopted its background details and full-length format.
Adapted from
William Keyse Rudolph, DMA Label copy (1990.146.1), May 2006.
NOTES
Provenance, exhibition history, and additional bibliographic sources added to TMS record based on the materials in object file.
I changed the status of this note from routed to completed, June 21, 2016. Then reversed this in order to fit the new Google Drive settings. As of Jan 2017 this note is tagged draft and routed. It can be tagged complete once the UMO is resolved. Update 3/1/2017- i am removing the routed tag and adding the completed tag because the archival assets are not yet in Piction. The %UMOpending tag will remain on this note until I can find and catalog the relevant assets.
Do the curators know of examples of topographical prints in the DMA collection? I did not perform thorough search, but 2000.36.FA and a few Italian prints from the 2000 Bromberg gift seem like possibilities. There is also a 17th century German pair of prints 1957.35.1-2 that might be okay to illustrate the concept.
FUN FACTS SOURCE- Adapted from Acquisition summary, 9 May 1990, which was excerpted from William Newell Hosley, The Great River: Art and Society of the Connecticut Valley, 1635-1820. (Hartford, CT: Wadsworth Atheneum, 1985), 156.
Removed TMS tag 1990.146.1
TEACHING RESOURCES- this painting was also used in the teaching packet "Searching for Faces." Those questions and activities were pasted into evernote as a separate note.
The following link did not work as of January 29, 2016- Ralph Earl, Major General Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus, Baron von Steuben (1730 - 1794), c. 1786, Yale University Art Gallery. http://artgallery.yale.edu/collections/objects/major-general-friedrich-wilhelm-augustus-baron-von-steuben-1730-1794. Accessed 2 February 2015.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Produced- Hartford, CT
Depicted- Middletown, CT
Process/materials
oil
canvas
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
portrait
painting
military commission
officer (military officer)
medal
veteran
town hall
country house
full-length
epaulet
lapel
uniform
dog
sword
landscape
trees
gaze
Palladian architecture
clouds
sash
red
foreground
letter
man
RELATED OBJECTS
1990.146.2- John T. Pratt's commission papers signed by George Washington March 4, 1791
PROVENANCE
1792- d.1824: Captain John Pratt (1753-1824)
From 1824: James T. Pratt, son of John Pratt, by descent [1]
n.d.: James T. Pratt Jr., by descent [1]
n.d.: James T. Pratt III, by descent [1]
By 1984: Moss Collection, Chicago, IL [2]
From 1990: Dallas Museum of Art, purchased from a private collector, Chicago, through Christie's New York
[1] No life dates in object file. List of descendants published in Christie's catalogue, May 1987, no. 10, page 22.
[2] The Dublin Seminar for New England Folklife: Annual Proceedings, June 16 and 17, 1984, "Itinerancy in New England," Appendix I, page 188, no. 24.
AUDIO ASSETS
Gallery talk- American Portraiture- Martha MacLeod- 3/25/2015
Object number in Piction cataloging.
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
- Military History of John Pratt (10/12/1753 - 12/27/1824)~Review a timeline of Captain Pratt's military service on The State Society of the Cincinnati of Pennsylvania's website.
- The Society of the Cincinnati~Check out the Society of the Cincinnati's website to read about the group's history and continuing activities.
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
Commemorative Art Object/Albums/Pratt Papers. Box 1, Item 9: Binder and CD: The Captain John T. Pratt Papers, 1779-1806.
The Pratt Papers document Pratt's activities as a Captain in the First Regiment of the United States Army. Includes appointment papers to the American Legion, signed by George Washington (original signed copies in Art Collection), and correspondence with Secretary of War Henry Knox. Three of the letters pre-date the establishment of the United States Military in 1789. COPIES OF THE DOCUMENTS ARE IN LIBRARY ARTIST FILE FOR Ralph Earl.
Letters to or from Captain Pratt. [18 objects, UMO PENDING]
- A "Return of Recruits..."- a list of Connecticut recruits. From Pratt to Secretary of War Knox. (Lieutenant John Pratt- Recruiting Officer), May 24, 1788
- Master Mason's Certificate, St. John's Regimental Lodge. August 6, 1779.
- Discharge (?) from duties as Assistant Commissary General to General James Clinton. August 25, 1779.
- Letter from Emos Hitchcock to Captain Pratt, September 29, 1780.
- Letter from Captain Pratt to Captain Thomas Cushing. April 25, 1790.
- Instructions from Secretary of War Knox to Captain Pratt, regarding mustering recruits. March 1, 1793. (Includes the envelope.)
- Copy of Dr. J. Strong's certificate of illness for Captain Pratt. November 23, 1793.
- Copy of Pratt's notification of resignation to General Wayne in the army, November 24, 1793.
- General Wayne's acknowledgment of Pratt's resignation. December 5, 1793.
- Letter from Major Cushing to Captain Pratt. December 25, 1793.
- Letter from Daniel Britts to Captain Pratt. February 21, 1794.
- Letter from E. Beatty to Captain Pratt, April 13, 1795.
- Letter from John Pratt to his wife (suggests her portrait be painted), October 25, 1799.
- Letter from Pratt to his wife ("limners will arrive"), October 31, 1799.
- Letter from David Bissell to Pratt, July 23, 1806.
- Pratt's address to the General Assembly of the State of Connecticut.
FUN FACTS
- John Pratt's pose relates to Ralph Earl's earlier military portraits, particularly Major General Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus, Baron von Steuben (1730 - 1794) (c. 1786, Yale University Art Gallery), a founder of the Society of the Cincinnati. However, Earl included elements specific to Pratt in his portrait. The house and regional landscape in the background and the prominent paper in Pratt's hand enhance the sense of specificity.
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 1990.146.1
Category
rules_operator
AND
General Description
The portrait of Captain John Pratt owes much to the biographies of both the sitter and the artist. The paper Pratt prominently brandishes in his left hand is his commission from George Washington as captain of the First Regiment of the United States Army (1990.146.2). On his Continental Army uniform, he wears a medal indicating membership in the Society of the Cincinnati, a then-elitist group of veterans. The viewer is thus reminded both of Pratt’s past and his continuing service to his newly founded country.
Conversely, the structure in the background—the town-hall of Middletown, Connecticut—is a reminder of Ralph Earl’s own history and artistic loyalties. Although linked with the portraits Earl painted in Connecticut, the motif is borrowed from topographical landscape paintings of British country houses, which Earl discovered while in England from 1778 to 1785 (loyal to the British cause, Earl left America during the Revolutionary War). Furthermore, the somewhat flat effect of the figure of Pratt relates to Earl’s rejection of the painterly effects of British portraiture, even while he adopted its background details and full-length format.
Adapted from
William Keyse Rudolph, DMA Label copy (1990.146.1), May 2006.
Fun Facts
- John Pratt's pose relates to Ralph Earl's earlier military portraits, particularly Major General Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus, Baron von Steuben (1730 - 1794) (c. 1786, Yale University Art Gallery), a founder of the Society of the Cincinnati. However, Earl included elements specific to Pratt in his portrait. The house and regional landscape in the background and the prominent paper in Pratt's hand enhance the sense of specificity.
Archival Resources
Commemorative Art Object/Albums/Pratt Papers. Box 1, Item 9: Binder and CD: The Captain John T. Pratt Papers, 1779-1806.
The Pratt Papers document Pratt's activities as a Captain in the First Regiment of the United States Army. Includes appointment papers to the American Legion, signed by George Washington (original signed copies in Art Collection), and correspondence with Secretary of War Henry Knox. Three of the letters pre-date the establishment of the United States Military in 1789. COPIES OF THE DOCUMENTS ARE IN LIBRARY ARTIST FILE FOR Ralph Earl.
Letters to or from Captain Pratt. [18 objects, UMO PENDING]
- A "Return of Recruits..."- a list of Connecticut recruits. From Pratt to Secretary of War Knox. (Lieutenant John Pratt- Recruiting Officer), May 24, 1788
- Master Mason's Certificate, St. John's Regimental Lodge. August 6, 1779.
- Discharge (?) from duties as Assistant Commissary General to General James Clinton. August 25, 1779.
- Letter from Emos Hitchcock to Captain Pratt, September 29, 1780.
- Letter from Captain Pratt to Captain Thomas Cushing. April 25, 1790.
- Instructions from Secretary of War Knox to Captain Pratt, regarding mustering recruits. March 1, 1793. (Includes the envelope.)
- Copy of Dr. J. Strong's certificate of illness for Captain Pratt. November 23, 1793.
- Copy of Pratt's notification of resignation to General Wayne in the army, November 24, 1793.
- General Wayne's acknowledgment of Pratt's resignation. December 5, 1793.
- Letter from Major Cushing to Captain Pratt. December 25, 1793.
- Letter from Daniel Britts to Captain Pratt. February 21, 1794.
- Letter from E. Beatty to Captain Pratt, April 13, 1795.
- Letter from John Pratt to his wife (suggests her portrait be painted), October 25, 1799.
- Letter from Pratt to his wife ("limners will arrive"), October 31, 1799.
- Letter from David Bissell to Pratt, July 23, 1806.
- Pratt's address to the General Assembly of the State of Connecticut.
Web Resources
- Military History of John Pratt (10/12/1753 - 12/27/1824)~Review a timeline of Captain Pratt's military service on The State Society of the Cincinnati of Pennsylvania's website.
- The Society of the Cincinnati~Check out the Society of the Cincinnati's website to read about the group's history and continuing activities.
Notes
Provenance, exhibition history, and additional bibliographic sources added to TMS record based on the materials in object file.
I changed the status of this note from routed to completed, June 21, 2016. Then reversed this in order to fit the new Google Drive settings. As of Jan 2017 this note is tagged draft and routed. It can be tagged complete once the UMO is resolved. Update 3/1/2017- i am removing the routed tag and adding the completed tag because the archival assets are not yet in Piction. The %UMOpending tag will remain on this note until I can find and catalog the relevant assets.
Do the curators know of examples of topographical prints in the DMA collection? I did not perform thorough search, but 2000.36.FA and a few Italian prints from the 2000 Bromberg gift seem like possibilities. There is also a 17th century German pair of prints 1957.35.1-2 that might be okay to illustrate the concept.
rules
Apply To
Objects
number
Equals
1990.146.1
source file
object_notes_3_c-0201.xml.nores