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Mederic-Louis-Elie Moreau de Saint-Mery

1798
Not on view
According to William Dunlap, biographer of American artists, the price for a profile likeness by James Sharples was $15; for a full-face, $20. The so-called full-face images, such as this, actually portray a three-quarters visage. They are relatively rare in Sharples’s oeuvre and, almost without exception, are singular images, whereas his profiles were drawn to be replicated. Moreau de Saint-Méry, a member of a distinguished Creole family, served as deputy for Martinique and as an elector in Paris before being forced to flee to the United States in November 1793, after Robespierre’s accession to power. He sat for Sharples in Philadelphia, where he owned a bookshop, pursued his career as an author, and sold dry goods on the side.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Mederic-Louis-Elie Moreau de Saint-Mery
  • Artist: James Sharples (ca. 1751–1811)
  • Date: 1798
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Pastel and black chalk (or black pastel) on toned (now oxidized) wove paper
  • Dimensions: 9 7/16 x 7 1/4 in. (24 x 18.4 cm)
  • Credit Line: Bequest of Charles Allen Munn, 1924
  • Object Number: 24.109.89
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

More Artwork

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Two Profiles, Possibly of John Adams, James Sharples British, Pastel on gray laid paper, American
Two Profiles, Possibly of John Adams
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Powder Horn, Horn (cow), lead, American
Powder Horn
American
18th century
The Dance Lesson, Edgar Degas French, Pastel and black chalk on three pieces of wove paper, joined together
The Dance Lesson
Edgar Degas
ca. 1879
Peter LaBagh, James Sharples British, Pastel, black and red chalk on toned (now oxidized) wove paper, American
Peter LaBagh
Follower of James Sharples
1793–1811
Fender, Brass
Fender
1790–1815

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