Description
Daniel Crommelin Verplanck sits on a ledge in a red coat, white stockings and dark shoes, with a squirrel close to his hand and lap. Trees open the setting at one side while darker architecture steadies the other. John Singleton Copley gives the young sitter a clear, composed presence, using the pet and the contrasting surroundings to bring variety to the formal portrait.
Painted in 1771 in oil on canvas, the picture shows Verplanck at the age of nine. The Metropolitan Museum of Art connects the setting with his family’s Hudson Valley home and explains that the trained squirrel belonged to a familiar portrait theme associated with patience and diligence. The boy’s individual face and carefully observed clothing keep that symbolism rooted in a particular person rather than a generalized image of childhood.
Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the John Singleton Copley collection.





Reviews
There are no reviews yet.