George Washington was warrior, statesman, sportsman, gentleman. Yet few pictures or statues of him suggest more than one side of his nature. In Artist Gilbert Stuart's famed portrait he is a gracious, handsome worthy. Other paintings depict him as a conventional, bewigged military man; a somewhat pompous dignitary. The Washington nose, thought too big for beauty, was usually modified. There was a keenness in the face, too, that most artists missed.
Neither the nose nor the keenness escaped Sculptor Jean Antoine Houdon (1740-1828), whose proud, grim marble bust is generally conceded to be...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
