Jonathan Budington
Face Maker
Despite the fact that this painting, one of the icons of early American folk portraiture, has been included in numerous important exhibitions and has been illustrated in many publications, little is known about its creator. There has never been a complete review and evaluation of all Budington's known works. Stimulated by the desire to add to the knowledge concerning this little-known folk artist, we initiated an investigation of his life and work. The earliest known reference to a painter with the name Jonathan Budington is in the 1934 edition of William Dunlap's A History of the Rise and Progress of the Arts ofDesign in the United States. The author quotes John Wesley Jarvis, a New York City portrait painter, who in discussing his colleagues remarks, "I was the best painter, because others were worse than bad—so bad was the best. There was a man of the name of Buddington, who shared in face making; but I beat him at it." A second reference to him appears in the index: "Buddington painted portraits in New-York, 1798. 2 The literature contains no further references to a Jonathan Buddington or a J. Budington until the 1957 catalog that accompanied the Connecticut Historical Society's exhibition "Little-Known Connecticut Artists 1790-1810." In its introduction, Nina Fletcher Little wrote, "One of the significant artists whose signature appears on his canvases is Jonathan Budington who is represented in the exhibition by four inscribed canvases, all of which are believed to be of Connecticut origin."3 These four works, all oil on canvas, include Little Girl with Kitten, Father and Son, Man with Cane, and Woman with Spectacles. To obtain information concerning additional paintings by Budington, we consulted many other sources. Groce and Wallace's New-York Historical Society's Dictionary of Artists in America 1564-1860 has the following entry: "Buddington [sic], Jonathan. Portrait painter, NYC, c. 1798-1812. His portrait of a little girl, signed and dated 'J. Budington Pinxt 1800,' is owned by Mrs. Bertram K. Little of Brookline(Mass.)."4 In the December 1985 issue of The Magazine Antiques we found a report on and photograph of the oilon-canvas portrait of George Eliot and his family, recently acquired by the Yale University Art Gallery.' In the lower left corner, in red paint, is the signature and date "J. Budington/Pinxt 179(?)"(the last digit is illegible). It has been pointed out that the style of clothing worn by George Eliot supports a date toward the end of the 1790s.6
42 FALL 1997 FOLK ART
We reviewed the Inventory of American Paintings, Artist Index 1992, of the National Museum of American Art/Smithsonian Institution. This included the following works by Budington: View of Cannon House and Wharf, Father and Son, John Nichols, Mary Hill (Mrs. John) Nichols, and Little Girl with Kitten; it did not mention the portrait of George Eliot and family, but did discuss two oilon-canvas portraits of which we had been unaware: Child ofthe Hubbell Family and Elisha Corning. At this point we knew of seven portraits and View of Cannon House and Wharf that had been attributed to Jonathan Budington, five of which were signed and dated. We studied the signed ones—Little Girl with Kitten, George Eliot and Family, Father and Son, John Nichols and Mary Hill(Mrs. John) Nichols (these last two had previously been identified in the Connecticut Historical Society exhibition as Man with Cane and Woman with Specta-
cles)—to determine Budington's stylistic characteristics, which would allow identification of unsigned portraits. They are all oil on canvas, painted between 179(?) and 1802, with the head and body of the subject turned in a three-quarter view. They are large, ranging in size from 31 by 28 inches to 44% by 557/8 inches. All adult subjects are shown seated, while children are depicted standing, the exception being the Little Girl with Kitten. Although not so in George Eliot and Family, the subjects are positioned adjacent to a window or open doorway; background drapery is included in three of them. These details, plus others observed in the signed portraits, make two significant facts evident: first, that Budington had found a formula he liked, and which he repeated; second, that he was strongly influenced by contemporary folk painters, particularly Ralph Earl, who was active as a portrait painter in Connecticut and New York
JOHN NICHOLS 1802 Oil on canvas 38/ 1 4 30/ 1 2 " Inscribed at lower left: J. Budington Pinxt. 1802" The Connecticut Historical Society, Hartford
MARY HILL (MRS. JOHN) NICHOLS 1802 Oil on canvas 381 / 2 30/ 1 2" Inscribed at lower left: 1. Budington Pinxt. 1802" The Connecticut Historical Society, Hartford