Live Free and Draw

A nine-foot-tall portrait of NH native John A. Dix, who, as President Buchanan’s Secretary of the Treasury, set “the hearts of the people everywhere ablaze”…

NEXT:  The famous “Shoot Him On the Spot” memo >>

John Adams Dix (born in Boscawen, 1798) issued what the NY Herald called “the first command to shed blood that has been issued in the present crisis” (namely, the secession crisis of early 1861)… But we’ll get into that in a later post!

His enormous painting hangs on the first floor of the NH State House, next to portraits of Mary Baker Eddy and Col. Joseph Cilley.

I want to note here that I really feel this sketch simply DOES NOT capture Dix’s complex stare as portrayed in the original portrait.  HOWEVER, as with all these sketches, I see this as a way to hint at the impact of the artwork (as distinct from its actual appearance) and to approach the STORIES behind the artwork.