William Joseph Weaver (1759-1817) was an artist born in London who came to prominence in North America. He is perhaps most famous for his portrait of Alexander Hamilton which hangs in the

United States State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nat ...

, and his full-length portrait of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, which hangs in

Province House (Nova Scotia) Province House ( gd, Taigh na Roinne) in Halifax is where the Nova Scotia legislative assembly, known officially as the Nova Scotia House of Assembly, has met every year since 1819, making it the longest serving legislative building in Canada. T ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. He also worked for Joseph Booth's Polygraphic Society. Former Director and Chief Curator of the

Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute The Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute (MWPAI) is a regional fine arts center founded in 1919 and located in Utica, New York. The institute has three program divisions: *Museum of art *Performing arts *School of art Museum of art The museum o ...

Paul Schweizer writes that Weaver's work "convey a chaste elegance that is similar in look and mood to the finest neoclassical portraits made in North America." Weaver's composition reflects a knowledge of British and French military portraiture. He painted portraits and miniatures in many of the principal cities along the Atlantic seaboard from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Savannah, Georgia. He also produced portraits of Martha and

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

, though their locations are unknown. Weaver was one of the first professional artists to work in Halifax (c. 1797). He made portraits or miniatures of the city's merchants, aristocrats and military officers. Currently, six small portraits that Weaver painted in Nova Scotia have been identified. Five of these were painted on tinplate. There are likely more that are unsigned.D. Schweizer "The 'Strong and Striking' Likenesses of William J.Weaver (c. 1759-1817) – An Introduction" Journal of Early Southern Decorative Arts 1992 NOVEMBER, Vol, 18, No. 2

Gallery

File:Prince Edward By William J Weaver.png, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn,

File:Alexander Hamilton By William J Weaver.jpg, Alexander Hamilton,

Links

US State Department – Weaver’s portrait of Alexander Hamilton

References

Endnotes Sources * Harry Piers
“Artists in Nova Scotia,”
''N.S. Hist. Soc., Coll''., 18 (1914): 101–65. * Paul D. Schweizer. William J. Weaver and His "Chymical and Mechanical" Portraits of Alexander Hamilton. ''American Art Journal'' Vol. 30, No. 1/2 (1999), pp. 82–101 * D. Schweizer "The 'Strong and Striking' Likenesses of William J.Weaver (c. 1759-1817) – An Introduction" ''Journal of Early Southern Decorative Arts'' 1992 NOVEMBER, Vol, 18, No. 2 * Schweizer, Paul D.William J. Weaver (ca. 1759-1817): Halifax Portraitist. ''Nova Scotia Historical Review.'' 1993. Vol. 13. No. 1, 77 – 92 * Schweizer, Paul D. William J. Weaver's Secret Art of Multiplying Pictures, in ''Painting and Portrait Making in the American Northeast,'' Dublin Seminar for New England Folklife, Annual Proceedings, 1994 (Boston: Boston University, 19xx), 151–66. {{DEFAULTSORT:Weaver, William Joseph 1759 births 1817 deaths English portrait painters Artists from Nova Scotia