W&L Holds Public Lecture: ‘Getting Away with Fraud: The Lansdowne Portraits of George Washington’ Evans will discuss the history behind several fraudulent copies of Lansdowne-style George Washington portraits that were produced based on the original.
Washington and Lee’s University Collections of Art and History will host Dorinda Evans, professor emerita at Emory University, on Sept. 20 at 5 p.m. in the Science Center, Room 114 for a public lecture titled “Getting Away with Fraud: The Lansdowne Portraits of George Washington.” The talk is free and open to the public.
Evans will discuss the history behind several fraudulent copies of Lansdowne-style George Washington portraits that were produced based on the original. W&L owns a Lansdowne-style painting given to the university, which now hangs in Leyburn Library.
“Evans will reveal historical and art historical intrigues based on her research regarding paintings she attributes to William Winstanley, who copied Stuart’s work and sold the paintings fraudulently,” said Patt Hobbs, associate director of UCAH and curator of Art and History. “This includes the university’s copy of the Lansdowne portrait of Washington, once thought to be an original Stuart.”
Evans has also worked closely with Erich Uffelman, Bentley Professor of Chemistry at W&L, and his summer interns who have conducted scientific examinations of W&L’s Lansdowne, as well as other copies in the country, including the White House.
The talk is sponsored by University Collections of Art and History.
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