Name/Title
Portrait of Sir John A. Macdonald (1815-1891), first Prime Minister of CanadaEntry/Object ID
2018.08.27Description
Print
Photogravure (1888) after 1886 oil painting by Andrew Dickson Patterson.
The 3/4 view standing portrait depicts Sir John Alexander Macdonald GCB PC QC, the first Prime Minister of Canada (1867-73, 1878-91), lawyer, businessman and politician, born in Glasgow, Scotland and who died in Ottawa. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, his political career spanned almost half a century. Macdonald was also key to nation-building in his central role in making the transcontinental railway a reality. Without doubt, one of the most influential and important Canadians in history, Macdonald was not without flaws, and in more recent years his legacy, particularly in relation to Indigenous policies and his approach to Chinese immigration, is being re-examined.Artwork Details
Medium
Photogravure on paperSubject Place
Region
NortheastContinent
North AmericaContext
Patterson was the only artist that Canadian Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald agreed to have paint his portrait. The sittings took place in Macdonald's home near Rivière-du-Loup, Québec in 1885, with the painting completed in 1886. In 1888 Patterson took his canvas to Paris via London to have the portrait reproduced as a limited edition photogravure by Goupil & Cie, world leader in the art and publishing industry of the day. Over the next several years, a number of these prints made of the original portrait were signed in pencil by Macdonald.
The painting is part of Canada's Crown Collection at Rideau Hall, the Official Residence of the Prime Minister of Canada.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Andrew Dickson Patterson, RCA (1854-1930)Role
PainterArtist
Goupil & Cie.Role
PrinterDate made
1888Time Period
19th CenturyNotes
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in Picton, Ontario, Andrew Dickson Patterson was a Canadian painter known for his portraiture, especially of politicians, as well as landscapes. He worked in oil, watercolour and ink. The son of the Hon. Christopher Salmon Patterson, he studied at Upper Canada College in Toronto, then in London, England under John Everett Millais (1829-1896) at the South Kensington Art School in London. Millais was a founding member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, the first avant-garde group in the history of British art.
Patterson worked in Toronto (1880-1889, 1894-1908), Ottawa (1890-1893), and thereafter in Montreal for decades until his death (1909-1930). He was married to painter-etcher Edith Lalande née Ravenshaw, born in East Sheen, Surrey, England and he was a member of the Pen and Pencil Club in Montreal.
Sadly, Patterson, "In his last years here he was poor and neglected. At one point he was nearly evicted from his Victoria Street rooms for non-payment of rent." Reported in The Montreal Gazette, August 30, 1997 article.Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
Inscription, SignatureLocation
Signed/Dated lower right in print: ADP 1886
Lower left margin in pencil: A. D. Patterson. 29.
Lower right margin in pencil: John A. MacdonaldDimensions
Dimension Description
SupportHeight
83.8 cmWidth
65.4 cmAcquisition
Acquisition Method
GiftNotes
Donated by Dr. G.F. Roseborough. Former UCBC MemberRelationships
Related Entries
Notes
2018.08.27 Portrait of Sir John A. Macdonald, first Prime Minister of Canada
2021.03.01 The Fathers of Confederation
2022.03.01 John A. Macdonald
