John Haviland

John Neagle

1828 · Oil on canvas · The American Wing

The ingenious British architect John Haviland (1792 - 1852) sat for his contemporary John Neagle, while at work on the building that would make him famous. Haviland's Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia (1823-29), one of the largest architectural projects yet undertaken in the United States, was hailed as revolutionary and epochal. In this portrait, Haviland appears to be checking with calipers his innovative scheme of cells radiating from a central core; his plan would later influence prison design internationally. The watercolor rendering at right shows the neo-Gothic facade of the prison, while the book--a volume of James Stuart and Nicholas Revett's "The Antiquities of Athens" (1762-1816)--betrays his eclectic stylistic interests. Haviland later designed the Hall of Justice in New York (fondly called "The Tombs") and was a founder of the American Institute of Architects.

Artist

John Neagle

Date

1828

Medium

Oil on canvas

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

The Alfred N. Punnett Endowment Fund, 1938