Gilbert Stuart PORTRAYED BY BOB GLEASON
Bob Gleason’s Gilbert Stuart is a portrayal of a prickly, opinionated artist who brooked no interference and frequently insulted people. Stuart might even keep the picture of you he had painted (and for which you had paid him) if he didn’t like you. Or, like the Henry Knox portrait, hang the painting as a gate in his barnyard! Stuart was naturally talented, but since he didn’t have to work hard at it, he didn’t appreciate what he had. Stuart had a keen eye for physical details that conveyed human character and Stuart would rather be right than be popular.
But Stuart was popular, becoming the foremost portraitist of his time. And he is just as popular now, having painted the George Washington portrait on the United States dollar bill. So, if you wanted to be painted by the artist who painted the definitive George Washington (Lansdowne Portrait), then Gilbert Stuart was your guy! Invite Gilbert Stuart for gatherings of artists, for events concerning George Washington or Dolley Madison, for groups learning about commitment to artistic integrity.
Bob Gleason: Bio Actor/Historian, Interpreter, Reenactor, Impersonator