Robert Feke proved to be the most talented native-born painter prior to John Singleton Copley. He was also a major influence on Copley himself, who would become the greatest American artist of the colonial period. Feke was born in about 1707 in Oyster Bay, Long Island, and worked in Newport, Philadelphia, and Boston. Although he had no formal training, his style indicates the direct influence of John Smibert and an awareness of contemporary British and Continental painting. Approximately sixty paintings by Feke are known today, of which twelve are signed and dated. This portrait of Isaac Winslow is representative of his linear style, rococo palette, and accurate characterization of his sitters.