Edward Tuckerman
Artist
John Ritto Penniman
(American, 1782–1841)
Artistafter
Gerrit Schipper
(American, 1775–1830)
Date1823
Mediumoil on panel
Dimensionspanel: 24.3 × 20.2 cm (9 9/16 × 7 15/16 in.)
ClassificationsPaintings
Credit LineGift of Stephen Salisbury III
Object number1899.6
Label TextEdward Tuckerman (1740-1818) was a civic leader in Boston. His eldest daughter, Elizabeth, married Stephen Salisbury I of Worcester. Their grandson, the donor of this portrait, founded the Worcester Art Museum.
Penniman made this replica in oil in 1823 from a crayon portrait original drawn in 1804 by the Dutch-born and Parisian-trained artist, Gerritt Schipper (1775-c.1830). Penniman was active in Boston from about 1805 until the late 1820s. A native of Worcester County, he was a diverse and innovative artist. He excelled as a draughtsman, designing trade cards, certificates, and illustrations for patents and seals—notably the seal for the American Antiquarian Society. During the first decade of the nineteenth century he worked with the Roxbury craftsman John Doggett and the clockmakers Aaron and Simon Willard, painting furniture and clock faces. As a painter, Penniman’s subjects ranged from portraits to literary and religious scenes as well as landscapes and city views.
The Massachusetts Spy carried an announcement on September 15, 1830 that Penniman had moved from Boston to West Brookfield and that he intended to continue in business—painting military standards, signs, portraits, as well as executing “accurate Drawings of New Inventions designed to be Patented; Original Designs for Diplomas for Frontispieces and Title Pages of Books.” The last public notice about the artist, appearing in The Rat-Trap in 1837, told of his agreement to serve for three years as a draughtsman on board the U.S.S. Independence.ProvenanceStephen Salisbury, Worcester MAOn View
Not on view
