Art provides one way of understanding the forms the American identity has taken over time. The portraits of a particular era offer clues to the values of both the portrait subject and the world in which s/he lived. Use the images below to develop some hypotheses about the nature of Puritan culture and the ways in which it was similar to and/or different from American culture in the era of the Revolution.
The picture you see below is a self portrait painted by Thomas Smith in 1680. In fact, this is the first portrait painted in America for which we can identify the artist; and the painting is in the collections of the Worcester Art Museum. As you may have guessed, Smith was a Puritan.
The paper resting on his desk bears the following inscription:
Why why should I the World be minding
therein a World of Evils Finding.
Then Farwell World: Farwell thy Jarres
thy Joies thy Toies thy Wiles thy Warrs
Truth Sounds Retreat: I am not sorye.
The Eternall Drawes to him my heart
By Faith (which can thy Force Subvert)
To Crowne me (after Grace) with Glory.
Since this is a self portrait, we can assume that Smith carefully chose all of the elements in the painting in order to convey a particular image of himself. What elements in this painting are consistent with your ideas about Puritan beliefs and culture? Are there any elements in this painitng that seem to clash with your expectations, or that surprise you for some reason?
To find out more about this painting, consult the discussion of Smith Self Portrait provided by the Worcester Art Museum in their Catalogue of Early American Portraits.
