A Vision Takes Form: the White House Under Construction, 1796

This oil painting entitled A Vision Takes Form was completed by artist Peter Waddell in 2007, during George W. Bush's administration. The White House Historical Association commissioned the painting to illustrate 18th century construction processes, materials, and equipment to depict the construction site and its surroundings as it may have appeared in 1796. In the foreground are a group that included White House architect James Hoban, master carpenter Pierce Purcell, and William Thornton, an architect and D.C. commissioner, surveying the construction of the White House.. ***Interior use only for publications***