CHALK PROFILE PORTRAIT OF THOMAS BOLLING ROBERTSON. by Saint-Mémin, Charles B.J.F. de:
Currentling offered by William Reese Company - Americana (New Haven, CT, U.S.A.) Priced at $22,500.00
17 3/4 x 11 1/2 inches. Drawing, executed on the pink drawing paper typically used by St. Mémin. The profile portrait is mounted on a later sheet of paper in the 19th century (as noted by Miles). Small closed tear through the subject's nose, three longer tears through his face, meeting in his cheek, but with no loss, and expertly conserved by Theresa Fairbanks Harris.A conservation report and before and after photographs are available. In later wood frame with eglomized glass (26 1/4 x 20 3/4 inches) matching the style typically used by St. Mémin. A superb portrait by the well known French- American artist, Charles St.-Mémin, of prominent Virginian and future Secretary, Congressman, Attorney General and Governor of Louisiana, executed in Richmond in 1807.
Charles St.-Mémin immigrated to the United States from France in 1793, his family having lost its lands and money in the French Revolution. He taught himself the techniques of engraving and drawing in New York, and in 1796 began making profile portraits with a physiognotrace. Over the next fourteen years he travelled throughout the United States, making profile portraits, both original drawings and in the form of small engravings. During this time he executed portraits of many of the leading figures of the day, from Presidents down. Ellen Miles' extensive work on St.-Mémin, published by the National Portrait Gallery, describes every aspect of his career and lists almost a thousand known portraits by him.
Saint-Mémin spent less than a year in Richmond (1807-1808), but it was an incredibly productive period for him, as he made more than 120 portraits while in the city. At the time of his stay, Richmond was in the midst of the trial of Aaron Burr, and the city was crowded with notables. Saint- Mémin executed the portraits of many of the principals in the trail, including presiding judge John Marshall. Miles observes that "Saint Mémin's Richmond portraits are executed in a broader, looser technique that his earlier work. The chalk strokes are long, bold, and strong, notably in the rendering of the mens' coasts. This slight change in style did not affect the facial profiles, which remain precise and detailed. The change is not surprising, given the large number of portraits Saint-Mémin made in so short a time."
Thomas Bolling Robertson (1779-1828) was one of the prominent Virginians who sat for a portrait by Saint-Mémin. He was born near Petersburg, graduated from William and Mary and then studied law, being admitted to the bar in 1806. Shortly thereafter, and concurrent with when this portrait , he was appointed by Thomas Jefferson as Secretary for the Territory of Orleans, and moved to New Orleans in 1807, probably very shortly after this portrait was made. He was elected as the first Congressman from Louisiana in 1812 and served until 1818, after which he became the state's third governor, serving from 1820 to 1824. Robertson was also Attorney General of Louisiana and judge of the United States Court for the district of Louisiana. Although virtually all of his adult and professional career was spent in Louisiana when not representing the state in Congress, he returned to Virginia to take the waters at Warm Springs in 1828 and died there, in his native state. Miles traces the provenance of this portrait through at least three generations of Robertson's family. One of Robertson's brothers, in the meantime, became governor of Virginia. A wonderful American portrait, by an artist whose distinctive style was in great demand, of a major figure in early Louisiana. Miles, ST.-MÉMIN (Washington, 1994) 701, and pp.163-171. Norfleet, SAINT-MÉMIN IN VIRGINIA, p.201. R.S. Robertson, "St. Memin Portraits: Thomas Bolling Robertson - Governor of Louisiana," in MAGAZINE OF AMERICAN HISTORY (1881), pp.297, 428-430, 460. Bookseller Inventory # WRCAM 40621
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