Standing Man, with Scroll (from Sketchbook) 1810 - 1820

Thomas Sully created this watercolor, Standing Man, with Scroll, as part of a sketchbook probably in the first half of the 19th century. Sully lived and worked in a world undergoing massive shifts in political power and social structures, particularly regarding race and class. At first glance, this image seems to depict a man of status, posed with a scroll in what appears to be a classical setting. The figure’s clothing and powdered wig speak to the hierarchies of the time, where appearance signaled one’s position in society. But there's something almost theatrical about the figure and setting. Is this a portrait of a real person, or is it a study for a historical painting, or even a theatrical production? Sully was well known for his portraiture of the wealthy elite, yet this sketch complicates easy categorization. It asks us to consider how identities are constructed, performed, and represented through images, and what those images can tell us about the society that produced them.