George Washington
- Artist: Gilbert Stuart
- Date: 1797
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Dimensions: 28 in. x 19 1/2 in. (711 mm x 495 mm)
- Portrays: George Washington
- Museum: The National Portrait Gallery
- Collection record: The National Portrait Gallery website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is “George Washington.” In the canvas before you, the former commander‑in‑chief sits in a classic pose, his hand resting on a polished table. Around him, books and papers spill onto the surface—plain yet potent symbols of the Constitution and the laws that bind this new nation.
Stuart, an artist who painted Washington many times, chose to echo royal portraiture. He kept the grand setting but dropped elaborate regalia; instead the authority comes from those open pages. The style is a replica made after Stuart’s death in 1797, capturing the mood of America and France at that time.
The work rests on canvas, about 28 by 19½ inches, and hangs here in the National Portrait Gallery in London—an enduring portrait of a cultivated statesman.
See it in person
George Washington is in the collection of The National Portrait Gallery at St Martin's Place, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
