James Sharples, c. 1751 - 1811 - George Washington - c. 1796 v2 - T-Shirt

This design reproduces a handwritten ink annotation on aged tan paper, written about James Sharples's portrait of George Washington.

Visual Elements & Composition

Tan dominates the design, with dark brown ink running in long cursive lines across the centre of the sheet. The handwriting is the main element. It opens by naming the "Portrait of Genl Washington" and continues in unbroken lines to a signature at the foot. Grey newsprint columns show at the edges, lined beneath the paper, and off-white highlights and creases break up the surface. The borders are irregular and worn, so the sheet reads as a rectangle that has been handled over many years.

Meaning & Symbolism

Annotations like this were kept beside a likeness to record its source, its sitter and how it was made. This one states that the portrait was painted by Mr Sharples in 1797 and is an exact likeness apart from the complexion, which the writer describes as very fair with light brown, almost auburn hair. The writer treats the picture as a documented object, giving the image a history alongside its appearance.

James Sharples (c. 1751-1811) was an English-born portraitist who worked in pastel and oil and spent much of his career in America, where he painted a number of prominent figures. The likenesses he made of Washington in the mid-1790s are central to that American work. The annotation therefore functions as testimony about the portrait, and its value lies in how it frames the likeness for later viewers.

On the Unisex Heavy Cotton Tee

A page of handwriting suits a tee because it is read at close range, the way a letter is held. Across the chest, the continuous cursive lines and the newsprint margins draw the eye from the opening lines down to the signature, so the wearer carries a document that asks to be read rather than a picture seen from across the room.