AFA Winter 2017

Winter 108 www.afamag.com | w ww.incollect.com Fig. 4: John Gadsby Chapman (1808–1889), Tomb of Washington, 1834. Oil on canvas, 21½ x 29 inches. Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association; Purchased with funds provided by Lucy S. Rhame and an anonymous donor (2017). By the time Chapman painted the tomb in which George Washington was initially buried at Mount Vernon, the family had moved Washington’s body to a new tomb and the earlier sepulcher was left in a state of romantic decay. in Rome, having spent three years drawing classical sculpture, copying Old Masters, and painting the Italian countryside. The revered statesman of American painting, Thomas Sully, had encouraged the artist at a very young age. Most importantly, Chapman had a pedigree that aligned him closely with those in power: born in Washington, D.C., his grandfather had owned several of the largest hotels in the capital area, including Alexandria’s Gadsby’s Tavern, often frequented by George Washington himself. He counted on his long-exposure to the region’s elite to guide his brush and palette to distinguished federal commissions. 1 It was James Kirke Paulding who emerged as Chapman’s most important patron. Paulding was associated with the circle of writers who contributed to the Knickerbocker magazine often known as the “Knickerbocker writers.” The group included such authors as William Cullen Bryant, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and Washington Irving. While little remembered today, Paulding was well known in the period for his romantic blend of American history and fiction similar to the work of James Fenimore Cooper. Paulding’s own aim in his writing was to forge a new American literature. He commissioned the young Chapman to paint nine Virginia landscapes just two years after the artist’s return from Italy. Supported almost entirely by Paulding for more than a year, Chapman exercised the research skills of a history painter in service of the author’s latest venture: a biography of George Washington for young readers that would reveal the private man behind the public figure. Distancing himself from Mason Locke Weems’ infamous cherry tree tale, Paulding sought “authentic” stories about Washington’s character. With his close connections to the Washington family and strong Virginia roots, Chapman proved the ideal candidate for the project. The Chapman-Paulding paintings did not form a single cohesive narrative, but together served two distinctive purposes: Chapman received the opportunity to create a higher form of art,