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On view in the Ronald L. and Mary J. Hurst Gallery



From the very beginning, American society was composed of people from many different ethnic, cultural, and religious backgrounds. Some were born here, some immigrated of their own accord, and some were forced here in the bonds of slavery. In this compact exhibition guests will encounter faces that represent some of the cultures and populations whose works are on view throughout the facility. Portraits include an American Indian man, an enslaved child, a wife and mother of six, and George Washington, among others.


Early American Faces_2

Portrait of an Enslaved Girl, by Mary Anna Randolph Custis, America, Virginia, Arlington County, 1830, watercolor, pencil, ink on wove paper, 6 x 4⅛in, 2007-34,1

Early American Faces_4

Portrait of George Washington, by Charles Willson Peale, America, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 1780, oil on linen ticking, Framed: 106 x 71¼in, Gift of John D. Rockefeller, Jr., 1933-502,A&B

Early American Faces_3

Portrait of Jerusha Bradford Weston, attributed to Rufus Hathaway, America, Massachusetts, Duxbury, probably 1793, oil on canvas, Framed: 43¾ x 31in, 1973.100.7

Early American Faces_1

Portrait of an American Indian Man, England, London, ca. 1790, oil on canvas, Framed: 32 1/16 x 27 1/16in, 2005-84