Memento Portrait of a Young Midshipman

John Downman

1769–1824 · Watercolor, colored chalk, and graphite · Drawings and Prints

Brooklyn-born George Dupont Pratt became a noted philanthropist, collector, and Met trustee, leaving the institution several British drawings. In this work, the young subject’s blue jacket identifies him as a sailor in the Royal Navy, a distant ship signaling his imminent departure from home. Downman’s success as a Regency-era portraitist resulted from a technique he devised that combined chalks and watercolor, enabling him to capture appealing likenesses and make multiple copies of these portraits if required. He received commissions from the royal family and nobility, but it was his many drawings for middle-class patrons that encouraged a growing contemporary taste for intimate, domestic-scale portraiture. Born in Wales, Downman studied in Liverpool and London, traveled to Italy, and then worked in Cambridge, Plymouth, Chester, and Wrexham.

Artist

John Downman

Date

1769–1824

Medium

Watercolor, colored chalk, and graphite

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Bequest of George D. Pratt, 1935