It's time to take a peek into the archives . . .
Audubon’s Headless Portrait
Hundreds daily pass by the familiar portrait of the valiant General Andrew Jackson hanging in the New York City Hall. Few, though, suspect the truth behind the John Vanderlyn painting and its link to our very own Henderson. The story, however, is recounted for us at the library in the October 19th, 1947 edition of The Times-Picayune New Orleans States Magazine.
It was 1823 in New York, and Vanderlyn had painted a beautiful, vibrant portrait of the valorous general’s head. He had encountered a problem, though, in that he had yet to paint Jackson’s body and had found no likely model to stand in for the unique stature of the very soon-to-be president.
Cut to next scene. . . It was August 1823, just a few years after John James Audubon had departed from his Henderson home. He was in New York attempting to peddle a collection of works which would later be infamously named the Birds of America. Upon failure to market his personally prized works, a disheartened Audubon decided to pay a visit to an old acquaintance, a Mr. John Vanderlyn.
It was in this meeting that Vanderlyn noticed the close resemblance between the Audubon’s body and that of Jackson. The poverty-stricken naturalist, desperately in need of a little money, readily agreed to pose for the artist. Wearing Jackson’s uniform and grasping his sword, Audubon must have been the spitting image of the general, for five days later, Vanderlyn’s creation was complete. The result was a lasting depiction, a synthesis of Andrew Jackson’s head and John James Audubon’s body.
To read the original newspaper article for yourself or to learn more about John James Audubon’s adventures and pursuits, visit us upstairs at the library. To see what kind of information is available in our Kentucky Files, visit us here: http://www.hcpl.org/genealogy/.
To view previous "Revisiting Henderson's Past," click here: http://www.hcpl.org/genealogy/genblog.html.
Hundreds daily pass by the familiar portrait of the valiant General Andrew Jackson hanging in the New York City Hall. Few, though, suspect the truth behind the John Vanderlyn painting and its link to our very own Henderson. The story, however, is recounted for us at the library in the October 19th, 1947 edition of The Times-Picayune New Orleans States Magazine.
It was 1823 in New York, and Vanderlyn had painted a beautiful, vibrant portrait of the valorous general’s head. He had encountered a problem, though, in that he had yet to paint Jackson’s body and had found no likely model to stand in for the unique stature of the very soon-to-be president.
Cut to next scene. . . It was August 1823, just a few years after John James Audubon had departed from his Henderson home. He was in New York attempting to peddle a collection of works which would later be infamously named the Birds of America. Upon failure to market his personally prized works, a disheartened Audubon decided to pay a visit to an old acquaintance, a Mr. John Vanderlyn.
It was in this meeting that Vanderlyn noticed the close resemblance between the Audubon’s body and that of Jackson. The poverty-stricken naturalist, desperately in need of a little money, readily agreed to pose for the artist. Wearing Jackson’s uniform and grasping his sword, Audubon must have been the spitting image of the general, for five days later, Vanderlyn’s creation was complete. The result was a lasting depiction, a synthesis of Andrew Jackson’s head and John James Audubon’s body.
To read the original newspaper article for yourself or to learn more about John James Audubon’s adventures and pursuits, visit us upstairs at the library. To see what kind of information is available in our Kentucky Files, visit us here: http://www.hcpl.org/genealogy/.
To view previous "Revisiting Henderson's Past," click here: http://www.hcpl.org/genealogy/genblog.html.
(Photo courtesy of the Louisiana State Museum)
No comments:
Post a Comment