It’s Election Day. Have you voted yet? George Washington set the precedent for a two-term limit on the United States Presidency when he declined to flee for a third term in 1796. The artist Gilbert Stuart portrayed Washington several times that year in this stately,full-length English portrait format, known as the Grand Manner. The nation’s first president is depicted in the classical pose of an orator, and with arm extended. This stance can also be interpreted as whether Washington is either saying farewell to the country he had served for many decades,or gesturing in a bright future. The added symbolism of the rainbow in the background referred to the era of peace following the Revolution, and suggested hope for the relatively original nation. Posted by Connie H. Choi
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