Study for ‘John Adams’ 1783

This preparatory sketch for John Singleton Copley’s 1783 painting "John Adams" depicts the second president of the United States standing with a scroll in hand and his right hand resting on his hip. The composition is somewhat informal and allows the viewer to get a sense of John Adams’s character. Copley's mastery of portraiture is evident in this sketch as well, capturing Adams’s likeness and the subtle details of his clothing in a quick and gestural style. This study demonstrates Copley’s process of creating a finished portrait, highlighting the artist’s working methods and the initial stages of the compositional development.