WATERBURY, CONN.- In celebration of the United States’ semiquincentennial, the Mattatuck Museum presents About Face: 250 Years of American Portraits, on view April 26 through August 16, 2026. The exhibition explores American history through the images and experiences of Americans spanning the past 250 years.
About Face: 250 Years of American Portraits considers portraiture as more than a record of appearance. The works in the exhibition show how artists have used portraiture to assert identity, navigate ideas of citizenship, and express belonging. From carefully constructed personas rooted in social status and power to contemporary portrayals of authenticity and visibility, these works capture and complicate the spirit of their era. The exhibition encourages audiences to see themselves in the story of America and to better understand how their history matters.
Drawing from the Mattatuck Museum’s collection as well as loans from other institutions, About Face: 250 Years of American Portraits examines the demographic and cultural transformations that have shaped the nation over 250 years. The exhibition also emphasizes the growing representation of women and marginalized groups in art, highlighting the ways portraiture has reflected and sometimes challenged social change. Through paintings, drawings, sculpture, and photography, the exhibition brings historic and modern works into conversation. From early American portraits shaped by European traditions to later works that challenge conventions around race, gender, and power, About Face: 250 Years of American Portraits highlights how ideas of representation have shifted over time.
About Face: 250 Years of American Portraits features works by artists including Romare Bearden, Thomas Hart Benton, Dawoud Bey, Louise Bourgeois, George Catlin, Ralph Earl, Walker Evans, Lois Mailou Jones, Marisol, Reginald Marsh, Ammi Phillips, Robert Rauschenberg, Fritz Scholder, Andy Warhol, James Van Der Zee, and N.C. Wyeth, alongside works by regional artists and makers connected to Connecticut and the Naugatuck Valley.
By placing works from different periods side by side, About Face: 250 Years of American Portraits invites visitors to consider whose stories have been preserved, whose have been left out, and how portraiture continues to shape our understanding of the American experience. The exhibition underscores the lasting importance of portraiture as both an artistic practice and a way of seeing ourselves and one another.
Visitors are invited to engage with a participatory portrait selfie station and community talk-back wall featured within About Face: 250 Years of American Portraits. Utilizing a photobooth acquired through an Art Bridges initiative, the interactive installation encourages visitors to reflect on identity, representation, and self-expression while contributing their own perspectives to the exhibition experience.
