Portrait of Three Children

Rembrandt Peale was the most successful of the numerous artist-sons of painter Charles Willson Peale. In his early work, he favored the more naturalistic painterly style of the English School of Portraiture. After trips to Paris in 1808 and 1809-10, his painting reflected the influence of the more idealized Neo-Classical style of French painters. Portrait of Three Children, painted in about 1809, appears to strike a balance between these two styles. The Peale family is considered by many to be America’s most illustrious artistic dynasty, headed by Charles Willson Peale (1741-1827), the renowned artist and naturalist. Other family artists included Charles’ sons, Rembrandt, Raphaelle, Rubens, and Titian, as well as Charles’ brother James, and James’s daughters Margaretta and Sarah.