Portrait of Thomas Aston Coffin

Artist John Singleton Copley (American, 1738 - 1815)

Date1758

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsOverall: 50 x 40in. (127 x 101.6cm)
Framed: 55 1/2 x 45 3/4 x 2 1/2in. (141 x 116.2 x 6.4cm)

ClassificationsPAINTINGS

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Terms

18th Century

Object number58.1

Description

On View

Not on view

Collections

18th-Century Paintings

CopyrightNo known copyright restrictions.

Label TextCopley’s portrait of the young Thomas Coffin, who later had a distinguished career in the British military, reveals the role of fashion in portraits. Coffin wears a blue satin coat over an ivory silk petticoat, expressing the wealth of his family. To the right, Copley includes a plumed hat, worn by males at the time, to symbolize his gender. Up to around the age of 8, boys and girls were dressed about the same. Copley painted this work when he was only 19 or 20, revealing his exceptional painting skills. He had no formal art instruction but studied as much contemporary work as he could to develop his talent and sharpen his technique.