Untitled

Thomas Sully achieved great success as a portraitist by highly idealizing his sitters, a practice colloquially known as “pretty painting.” Based in Philadelphia but working across the South, Sully’s sitters included Thomas Jefferson, the Marquis de Lafayette, and young Queen Victoria. His international appeal came from his lush, romantic colors and his elegant, angelic faces. Sully was unapologetically honest about his flattering depictions: “From long experience I know that resemblance in a portrait is essential; but no fault will be found with the artist, (at least by the sitter,) if he improve the appearance.”