Portrait of a Gentleman

Henry Benbridge

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The most remarkable aspect of this picture, which is among the finest examples of Benbridge's work, is the confidence and elegance with which it is painted. The subject is unknown, but it must have been painted in Philadelphia during the early 1770s, just after the artist returned from five years abroad. His study in Italy clearly made an improvement in his style. The composition is well balanced and enhanced by a mixture of bright and subtle colors.

The American Wing

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The American Wing's ever-evolving collection comprises some 20,000 works of art by African American, Euro American, Latin American, and Native American men and women. Ranging from the colonial to early-modern periods, the holdings include painting, sculpture, works on paper, and decorative arts—including furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, silver, metalwork, jewelry, basketry, quill and bead embroidery—as well as historical interiors and architectural fragments.

Metropolitan Museum of Art