Artist: Herman van der Myn (1648-1741)

Click on image for more information about the sitter.

Title: John Hart (d. 1740)
Date: 1732
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 50 x 40"
Accession number: MSA SC 1545-1171
 

John Hart was born in Ireland and came to Maryland in 1714 with his wife to serve as governor from 1714 to 1720. He also served as chancellor from 1715 to
1720 and as surveyor general of the Eastern Shore and the Western Shore from 1716 to 1720. He returned to England in 1720 and was governor of the Leeward
Islands from 1721 to 1727.

In the sitter's right hand is an envelope addressed "To the Right Honorable Colonel Bladen in London." Martin Bladen (1680-1746), a soldier and politician, was
Comptroller of the Mint in 1714, and Commissioner of Trade and Plantations from 1717 to 1746. The Commission of Trade and Plantations dealt with colonization,
and it is most likely in this context that Hart would have been in communication with Colonel Bladen. The attire of the sitter is an informal dressing gown, or banyan,
that would not be worn out of the house. This intimate style of portraiture was later adopted by John Singleton Copley in the 1760s in his depictions of Boston's
most prominent merchants, several of whom are also shown lounging in expensive, imported, damask banyans. Also of note is the extremely elaborate gilded
Rococo armchair in which Hart is seated.

Herman van der Myn was born in Amsterdam and died in London. He came to England around 1722 and was employed in painting portraits of the nobility. Among
his subjects were Frederick, Prince of Wales and Prince of Orange, as well as the Duke and Duchess of Chandos.

This painting was purchased by the state in 1948 upon approval from the Board of Public Works under the administration of William Preston Lane. It
was acquired through Knoedler & Co., Inc., of London and New York, acting as agent for a descendant of John Hart who inherited the portrait through Hart's
daughter, Marylandia.
 

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