Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin is a painting by the English portrait painter Benjamin Wilson.

The painting was commissioned by Benjamin Franklin during his diplomatic mission in England. He was to be sent to the United States, to his wife, Deborah Ready, as a sentimental gift. The choice of the painter fell on a little-known painter, Benjamin Wilson. Although he studied with Thomas Hudson, he was not an outstanding portraitist and was no match for contemporary painters such as Joshua Reynolds and Allan Ramsay. His second passion was physics and electricity research, and he was more successful in this field. Perhaps a shared passion for science prompted Franklin to commission Wilson to paint his portrait.