Thursday, February 11, 2016 | 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM
Event Location:
Museum of the City of New York
1220 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10029
Alexander Hamilton was a man of many faces: politician, economist, revolutionary — and rumored philanderer. After he was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr in 1804, Hamilton’s widow, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, worked tirelessly to defend her husband’s reputation. Today we are familiar with likenesses of Alexander Hamilton — including one that is on the ten dollar bill. This panel will explore how portraiture served in the decades after the American Revolution as a critical tool in shaping and canonizing the public image of leaders and notables. Join us for a conversation about how the Hamiltons and other members of the colonial New York elite commissioned portraits to use both as status symbols and a means to craft their public image. This program delves into the themes of the Museum of the City of New York's exhibition, Picturing Prestige: New York Portraits, 1700-1860.
William Gerdts, Professor Emeritus of Art History, CUNY Graduate Center
David Jaffee, Professor and Head of New Media Research, Bard Graduate Center
Elizabeth Mankin Kornhauser, Alice Pratt Brown Curator of American Paintings and Sculpture, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Brett Palfreyman, Assistant Professor, History Department, Wagner College
Bruce Weber (moderator), Museum's Curator of the exhibition Picturing Prestige: New York Portraits, 1700-1860