James Macpherson

George Romney painted James Macpherson around 1779, depicting the controversial literary figure who had published the supposed translations of the ancient Gaelic poet Ossian — texts that proved to be largely fabricated but that had an enormous influence on European Romanticism. Ossian's melancholic Northern poetry, supposedly translated from ancient Gaelic manuscripts, appealed to the period's hunger for a northern cultural mythology to compete with classical antiquity, and Macpherson's role in creating this mythology made him a significant cultural figure even after the forgery controversy damaged his reputation. Romney's portrait captures the complex man behind the literary controversy.

Romney renders Macpherson with the fluid brushwork and psychological intensity that characterize his best portraits. The warm palette and direct, unflattered characterization capture the controversial poet with the honest observation Romney brought to his sitters.