Picturing America: Washington, Franklin, & Lincoln
Left: Steve Brodner draws a caricature of Franklin. Right: Hiram Powers's 1862 statue of Franklin.
George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Abraham Lincoln are three of the best-known figures from U.S. history, and the portraits of them by Stuart, Powers, and Gardner are instantly recognizable. In this video from Picturing America, political caricaturist Steve Brodner brings a new perspective to the artistic rendering of these three men by drawing out the characteristics he finds most resonant.
View the video (6 minutes) from Picturing America.
Access the Picturing America lesson plans for Stuart's portrait of Washington, Powers's statue of Franklin, and Gardner's portrait of Lincoln.
Classroom Connections
Comprehension Questions
- How do these three pieces of art tell stories, according to Brodner?
- How do Lincoln's facial features communicate a narrative about his presidency and the recent national past?
- What draws people to Franklin?
- Why does Brodner question whether or not Stuart wanted to paint "Washington the human being?
- How does Brodner describe his caricature process? What does he seek to capture?
Discussion Questions
- What do the different media—painting, sculpture, photography, and caricature—allow these artists to express with their work?
- Caricatures are often irreverent. Does that description fit Brodner's drawings?
EDSITEment Resources
EDSITEment has a plethora of resources about these three figures and the historic events in which they played parts.
George Washington
Gilbert Stuart's Lansdowne Portrait of George Washington, 1796.
- Curriculum: What Made George Washington a Good Military Leader? (grades 9-12)
- Curriculum: Before and Beyond the Constitution: What Should a President Do? (grades 6-8)
- Lesson Plan: Washington and the Whiskey Rebellion (grades 6-12)
- Closer Readings Commentary: Emanuel Leutze's Symbolic Scene of Washington Crossing the Delaware
Benjamin Franklin
Hiram Powers (1805–1873), Benjamin Franklin, 1862.
- Lesson Plan: Benjamin Franklin's Many "Hats": Hiram Powers Statue (grades K-5)
- Student Activity: Benjamin Franklin's Virtues (grades K-5)
- Lesson Plan: Jefferson vs. Franklin: Revolutionary Philosophers (grades 6-8)
Abraham Lincoln
Alexander Gardner, photograph of Abraham Lincoln, 1865.
- Lesson Plan: Picture Lincoln (grades 6-8)
- Student Activity: Picturing Lincoln (grades 6-8)
- Curriculum: Abraham Lincoln on the American Union: "A Word Fitly Spoken" (grades 9-12)
- Curriculum: The Growing Crisis of Sectionalism in Antebellum America: A House Divided (grades 9-12)
- Closer Readings Commentary: Lincoln's Enduring Legacy