George Washington (The Athenaeum Portrait)

Gilbert Stuart

1796 · Oil on canvas · National Portrait Gallery, Washington, and Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Size2:3 ratio

Frame

$59Unframed print · made to order

📦 Free shipping on every order, arriving in 4–9 business days with production included. Express ($14.90) at checkout arrives in 4–6 business days.

Complete the setHangs well with these two

This print

George Washington (The Athenaeum Portrait)

Catherine Brass Yates (Mrs. Richard Yates)

The Skater (Portrait of William Grant)

3 × $59 at 16 × 24 in, unframed = $177 → $159.30 as a set · 10% included · free shipping

Choose different prints →

Giclée-printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper

Free shipping worldwide · arrives in 4–9 business days

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free

Secure checkout via Stripe

About this work

Artist: Gilbert Stuart (1755–1828)
Year: 1796
Medium: Oil on canvas
Original size: 121.9 × 88 cm
Collection: National Portrait Gallery, Washington, and Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (jointly owned)
Movement: Colonial American

George Washington's head and shoulders emerge from a bare, unfinished canvas. Stuart painted it from life in 1796, deliberately left it unfinished and kept it for the rest of his life, using it to paint some seventy copies for sale. It is the source of the engraving on the American one-dollar bill. It is owned jointly by the National Portrait Gallery, Washington, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

This exhibition-poster edition shows the whole work beneath original typography set in-house. The original is in the public domain.

Where it works

The most familiar face in American history for a study, office or hallway in a dark wood frame. It suits warm white, navy or deep green walls and is a gift for a history lover.

Style, size & framing detail

Style: Exhibition poster of a Colonial American painting
Era: 18th century (1796)
Orientation: Portrait
Palette: cream & beige
Mood: intimate
Rooms: hallway or entryway, study or library, home office, living room, dining room
Good gift for: housewarming, art lovers

Size. Prints at 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in — 12×18 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 16×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×36 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed.

Framing. Exhibition posters sit best in a slim black frame with no mat — the typeset margin is the mat.

Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).

Details & materials

• Exhibition poster — original, drawn in-house • Heavyweight matte fine-art paper, giclée printed at 300 DPI • Sizes: 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in; every size also available framed • Framed option: wood frame in black or dark wood, 12 mm wide and 22 mm deep, with a plexiglass front and no mat; the print is mounted inside and the frame's outside measures the listed size • Made to order; colours may vary slightly from screen

Shipping & returns

Printed after you order at the facility nearest you, then shipped. Standard delivery is free and takes 4–9 business days from order to door in the US, UK and EU (up to 10 elsewhere); Express takes 4–6 business days. Because each print is made to order we don't take change-of-mind returns, but if it arrives damaged or flawed we'll reprint or refund it — no return needed. Full policy →

Is this the whole painting, or a crop?

The whole work, uncropped. The exhibition-poster edition sets the complete image above typography designed in-house.

Is George Washington (The Athenaeum Portrait) in the public domain?

Yes. Gilbert Stuart (1755–1828) died more than 70 years ago and the work was published before 1929, so the painting itself is public domain. This print is a reproduction made from a high-resolution scan of the original, which is held by National Portrait Gallery.

What is it printed on?

Heavyweight matte fine-art paper with pigment inks, made to order in 12×18, 16×24 and 24×36 inches; every size is also offered framed in black or dark wood, with plexiglass and no mat. Colours are matched to the scan, not brightened.

When was George Washington (The Athenaeum Portrait) painted, and in what medium?

George Washington (The Athenaeum Portrait) dates from 1796 and was made in oil on canvas; the original measures 121.9 × 88 cm.

What size works above a sofa or bed?

Across a three-seat sofa or a queen bed, 24×36 is the size that reads as one statement piece; 16×24 suits a narrower wall or a pair.

About this design

A museum-exhibition poster of Gilbert Stuart's George Washington — george Washington's head and shoulders emerge from a bare, unfinished canvas — shown whole and uncropped beneath gallery typography. Portraits of the Early Republic, styled as a blockbuster exhibition print. A gallery-style exhibition poster: a celebrated public-domain artwork shown whole and uncropped beneath original exhibition typography set in-house — printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper. Every size is offered unframed or framed in black or dark wood. Part of the Madten Exhibition Posters Collection. — — — Printed to order and shipped by our production partner, Gelato.

Buy with confidence

The Madten promise

Gallery-grade archival giclée. Rich pigment inks on heavyweight fine-art paper (or gallery-wrapped canvas) — built to last, not a poster-shop print.

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free. Every piece is made to order; if it shows up damaged or flawed we remake it, no return needed.

Free worldwide shipping. Made & shipped from the facility nearest you — most orders arrive in 4–9 business days.

Secure checkout. Payments handled by Stripe; we never see or store your card.

Also available as