Ralph Izard, Jr.
Edward Green Malbone Charleston, South Carolina 1800–1802 Watercolor on ivory 82.144 Friends of the Museum Purchase
In 1785, Thomas Jefferson wrote, “I am an enthusiast on the subject of the arts…Its object is to improve the taste of my countrymen, to increase their reputation.” In Jefferson’s America, not only could art improve one’s reputation, but it could also transmit their status to others. The viewers of Ralph Izard’s portrait miniature would have understood the stature of the wearer, as well as Izard, by the expensive nature of this art form and the well-dressed manner of the subject.