25th Jun 2010
Ben Franklin’s Essence Portrait
Benjamin Franklin is one of the most interesting people in American history and possibly for all time.
He was a complex man, wise, witty and incredibly smart and savvy.
In my first Essence Portrait of Benjamin Franklin, I show him as somewhat younger, and more in his prime than we are used to seeing him. The image we normally find him on hundred dollar bills, where he resembles the guy on Quaker Oats, who probably was modeled after Franklin.
Were it not for his advanced age, Ben Franklin would have been one of the first presidents of the United States . As a Founding Father he was one of the prime movers who helped us gain our independence from England by creating an alliance with France.
Proverbs 13 (Ben Franklin)
By Judy Rey Wasserman
Franklin rose from working class beginnings to become a member of the high society of his time, both in the American states and also the French court. By the end of his life he had great achievements as politician, political theorist, statesman, author, scientist, inventor, soldier, civic activist and businessman.
As a scientist, Franklin discovered theories regarding electricity. He invented the lightning rod, bifocals, the Franklin stove, a carriage odometer, and the glass ‘armonica’.
He was a model citizen. He formed both the first public lending library in America and the first fire department in Pennsylvania . He played a major role in establishing the University of Pennsylvania and was elected the first president of the American Philosophical Society. From 1775 to 1776, Franklin was the Postmaster General under the Continental Congress and from 1785 to 1788, he served as the equivalent of governor of Pennsylvania .
Toward the end of his life, he became one of the most prominent abolitionists.
Franklin is also known for his sage wit and wisdom, usually found in his Poor Richard’s Almanac. When preparing to create the basic Essence Portrait of Ben Franklin, it seemed fitting to turn to the Bible’s Proverbs.13. and use the letters from the original Bible text for the strokes. I wonder if some of Franklin ‘s ideas and advice were inspired by this text.
To see and discover more about Judy Rey Wasserman’s Essence Portraits—the radical new portraiture of the 21 st Century go to : http://ungravenimage.com/essencevideos.php
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