This painting depicts a workshop scene where a large political poster is being created. On the left, a man stands at a worktable surrounded by tools and materials, including paint cans, brushes, and containers scattered around. He wears a tan vest over a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. On the right, two men stand next to a large white poster with the words "WE GO FOR THE UNION" above an oval portrait of a gray-haired man against a blue backdrop. The two men both seem to be painting the poster, with the man on the left holding a palette and a thin brush, and the man on the right holding a large can of white paint and a wide brush. The man on the left wears a tan coat and a yellow hat, while the man on the right has paint-covered overalls on over his white shirt and tie. The two men on the left have pale skin and clean-shaven faces, and we see them in profile. The man on the right looks out at us, and he has tan skin, a dark mustache, and a gray beard. In the center there is a window with a grid of rectangular panes, beyond which a vibrant orange and pink sky is visible.
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This painting depicts a workshop scene where a large political poster is being created. On the left, a man stands at a worktable surrounded by tools and materials, including paint cans, brushes, and containers scattered around. He wears a tan vest over a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. On the right, two men stand next to a large white poster with the words "WE GO FOR THE UNION" above an oval portrait of a gray-haired man against a blue backdrop. The two men both seem to be painting the poster, with the man on the left holding a palette and a thin brush, and the man on the right holding a large can of white paint and a wide brush. The man on the left wears a tan coat and a yellow hat, while the man on the right has paint-covered overalls on over his white shirt and tie. The two men on the left have pale skin and clean-shaven faces, and we see them in profile. The man on the right looks out at us, and he has tan skin, a dark mustache, and a gray beard. In the center there is a window with a grid of rectangular panes, beyond which a vibrant orange and pink sky is visible.

National Gallery of Art · Painting

"We Go for the Union"

American 19th Century

Date
c. 1840/1850
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
overall: 46.2 x 61.5 cm (18 3/16 x 24 3/16 in.) framed: 57.1 x 72.4 x 5.3 cm (22 1/2 x 28 1/2 x 2 1/16 in.)
Classification
Painting
Accession number
1956.13.13
Credit line
Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch
Time span
1826 to 1850
Department
CAB

Subjects and terms

  • painted surface
  • American
  • Painter
  • art
  • genre
  • Sign
  • American Naive Paintings
  • Naive
Provenance

Recorded as from Connecticut. Purchased in 1949 by Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch; gift to NGA, 1956.

Inscription

on sign: WE GO FOR / THE / UNION

NGA object ID 43641. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.