LEXINGTON, Va. – Washington and Lee University announced they will be lending their portrait of George Washington to the Virginia Museum of History and Culture for an upcoming exhibition.
The portrait is one of the seven paintings of Washington by Charles Peale, and the only one to predate the American Revolution.
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The Virginia Museum of History and Culture is hosting an exhibition titled “Give Me Liberty: Virginia and the Forging of a Nation.” The exhibition commemorates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The portrait will be on display as part of the exhibit at the VMHC in Richmond from March 22 to January 4, 2026. The portrait will then be taken to the American Revolution Museum in Yorktown, where it will be shown from July 1, 2026, to January 31, 2027.
“As stewards of our collection, we are responsible for preserving and sharing it with the general public, and this loan is an extraordinary opportunity for our university to contribute to a significant national commemoration and to allow our iconic painting to reach and inspire hundreds of thousands of visitors. This loan aligns with our mission to advance learning through direct engagement with the collection and facilitate an interdisciplinary appreciation of art, history and culture. We are honored to participate in this momentous exhibition and to see our collection serve a wider public.”
Isra El-beshir, director of art museum and galleries at W&L
Eventually, Washington and Lee plans to have the portrait’s final home at the forthcoming Institutional History Museum.