Abraham Lincoln by W.F.K. Travers

The National Portrait Gallery presents W.F.K. Travers’s life-size portrait of Abraham Lincoln, painted from life in 1865. The nine-foot oil painting is one of only three known life-size paintings of the 16th president and is displayed in the museum’s “America’s Presidents” exhibition.

The work is on long-term loan from the Hartley Dodge Foundation, with the cooperation of the citizens of Madison, New Jersey. Its imagery includes a Constitution and a globe centered on Haiti, references to Lincoln’s support for the Thirteenth Amendment and his recognition of Haiti as an independent nation in 1862. The portrait is also displayed near Gilbert Stuart’s Lansdowne portrait of George Washington, reuniting works that were shown together at Philadelphia’s 1876 Centennial Exhibition. The page notes that Congress considered acquiring the Lincoln painting for the Capitol several times in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

When: February 10, 2023–December 31, 2027

Venue: National Portrait Gallery, second floor, South Galleries

Exhibition: “America’s Presidents”

Artist: W.F.K. Travers

Artwork: Abraham Lincoln, 1865, oil on canvas

Size: Life-size, approximately nine feet tall

Loan: Long-term loan from the Hartley Dodge Foundation, courtesy of the citizens of the Borough of Madison, New Jersey

Accessibility: Beginning February 7, a nearby tactile presentation offers 3D-printed copies of a Leonard Volk face mask and hand casts, along with a Clark Mills face mask. The display includes braille object information and audio descriptions with additional historical context, supporting blind visitors and visitors with low vision while providing a more multisensory experience for all visitors.

Tickets: Price not available