Artwork
Son of Thomas Mellon
Son of Thomas Mellon is an ink drawing by the Romanticist artist Unknown. It dates from 1828 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art. The work is a portrait drawing executed with pen, brown ink, and red crayon on brown wove paper.
About this work
Overview
The work is a portrait drawing executed with pen, brown ink, and red crayon on brown wove paper. Rendered from the chest upward, the figure faces directly forward, set against an unmodulated background that emphasizes the sitter’s features without decorative distraction.
Subject & Meaning
The image portrays a young man with short, wavy hair and a high‑collared shirt, suggesting a modest, perhaps middle‑class attire of the period. The straightforward, unembellished presentation invites contemplation of the sitter’s inner life, offering a quiet, introspective mood.
Technique & Style
The artist employs fine pen lines and cross‑hatching to model the hair and fabric, creating subtle texture and depth. Brown ink provides the primary tonal structure, while touches of red crayon introduce limited accent, contributing to the warm, earthy palette of the brown wove support.
History & Provenance
The drawing is titled “Son of Thomas Mellon,” indicating a familial connection to the Mellon lineage. No further details about its creation date, original exhibition, or subsequent ownership are provided in the source material.
Context
The work’s restrained realism and emphasis on personal character align with portrait practices of the early nineteenth century, a period when artists often used modest materials and direct observation to capture individual likenesses.
Artist & collection
Domestic Scene
Giacomo and Cardinal Marco, investing Andrea, Abbot of San Zeno, with his Benefice
The Nymph of Fontainebleau
Portrait of a Woman
Madonna and Child with Saints in the Enclosed Garden
Venus and Minerva
Family Group of Four on Sofa
Wall painting from Room H of the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale
