Renaissance More Art

Painted in the 19th century, this exquisite miniature portrait wonderfully exemplifies realism in traditional oil painting. The small artwork is painted in the conventional portraiture style of the Old Masters, and achieves soft realism with fine brushwork and a subdued, neutral palette. The half length portrait depicts a fine Victorian woman dressed in all black with a delicate lace collar and bonnet. She wears a ruby broach...

This beautiful portrait was painted circa 1725 and is a fine example of the English eighteenth century portrait style. The artist has chosen to depict the lady against a plain background wearing a simple red silk dress and transparent headdress hanging down the back. The sitter is not shown with jewellery or any other elements to distract the viewer’s attached, thus highlighting the beauty of the young sitter. This restrained manner achieves a sense of understated elegance. The portrait genre was valued particularly highly in English society. Neither landscapes nor allegorical pictures were ever priced so highly at exhibitions and in the trade as depictions of people, from the highest aristocracy to scholars, writers, poets and statesmen. With the rich colouring and lyrical characterisation, these works are representative of the archetypal English portrait and is are very appealing examples of British portraiture...

Limited edition of 999 With this book, Jaume Plensa pays tribute to the poet Vicent Andrés Estellés and artistically reads L'Hotel París, a work that had ...

Provenance: Private Collection, New Jersey The present painting depicts Saint Vincent Ferrer preaching from a raised pulpit to a group of seven peopl...

Titan Fine Art are pleased to present this exquisite portrait. As much attention is paid to the woman's luxurious apparel as her facial features. The ...

The portrait genre was valued particularly highly in English society. Neither landscapes nor allegorical pictures were ever priced so highly at exhibitions and in the trade as depictions of people, from the highest aristocracy to scholars, writers, poets and statesmen. This charming portrait, presented by Titan Fine Art, of a fashionable young gentleman and his faithful pet is an excellent example of 17th century child portraiture in England. There is a remarkable beauty and sensitivity to the portrait. The face, particularly well rendered, has captured the character of this young man – both charming and at the same time mischievous. Only the playful attention of a small dog suggests anything less than patrician dignity. Symbolism was important in portraiture and it provided a pointed and aspirational narrative that would not have been lost on contemporary viewers. For example, the presence of the dog, which was likely the boy’s pet, is at once a charming pictorial device and also a clear allusion to fidelity, trust and loyalty. The hairstyle and the attire, notably the type of cravat with the blue ribbon, help to date this portrait to between 1670 to 1685. Until the late eighteenth century children were dressed as adults - boys were dressed like men in breeches, vests, and coats between four and seven years of age. The expensive lace is an indication to his family’s wealth. Held in a good quality and condition antique gilded frame. Born in Suffolk, Mary Beale, nee Cradock (1633-1699) was employed by many of the most distinguished persons of her time including nobility, landed gentry, and clergymen. Technically accomplished, her paintings are noteworthy for their honest and sympathetic portrayal. In 1651 she married Charles Beale...

The sitter in this superb portrait, presented by Titan Fine Art, is shown with the grandiloquence characteristic of the eighteenth-century French school of painting. The young nobleman has been portrayed wearing an ingeniously embellished French ceremonial armour, a mauve cloak, and an abundance of cascading curls falling below his shoulders. Our portrait proclaims to every onlooker that this is a superior being. The manner in which portraits were painted was set out by the terms of the commission and usually marked significant life events such as a betrothal, a death, elevation of rank… but they almost always emphasised the wealth and importance of the sitter. This type of portrait had become a standard format for aristocratic portraiture in Europe during the last quarter of the seventeenth century up to the middle of eighteenth century. Incorporated into the background was often a raging battlefield or a military encampment; our portrait is free from these trappings and contains a dramatic moody sky ensures the viewer focuses mainly on the subject. The features of the sitter’s face have been captured with great sensitivity, his confident gaze perhaps reflecting the near invincibility afforded by this steel suit. The flamboyance and penetrating sense of character, lending an air of noble expectancy to the composition, seems almost eclipsed by the artist's virtuosic handling of paint. It is not hard to understand why many wealthy sitters commissioned the artist to paint their portraits. Such fine and ornate armour was not actually used on a battlefield and thus its portrayal in portraiture was largely symbolic of a sitter’s wealth and status as well as a claim of succession to a chivalrous tradition. The style of hair and neckcloth were fashionable circa 1740. Held in an exquisite eighteenth century carved and gilded frame - a fine work of art in itself. Louis Tocqué was a very successful French portrait painter active during the Rococo period of art. His work was known for its attention to detail, its portrayal of the character of the sitter, the refined postures, and the delicacy of the rendered draperies. He created both realistic and expressive portraits. Tocqué was born in Paris in 1696 and trained with the famous portrait painters Hyacinthe Rigaud, Nicolas Bertin, and Jean Marc Nattier whose daughter he later married. He entered the Academy in 1731 and became a full member in 1734 with his portraits of Galloche and the sculptor Jean Louis Lemoine, and he pursued a brilliant career as a portrait painter, receiving numerous commissions from members of the French aristocracy and royalty. His works were highly sought after by collectors of the time, and his reputation earned him the appointment of official portrait painter to the court of France in 1746 – in fact he stayed at most of the courts in northern Europe. From 1737 to 1759 he exhibited a large number of works at the Salon. Tocqué's paintings can be found in museums and private collections around the world. Recent sales...

Continental School, 20th century oil on board, framed framed: 33 x 17.5 inches board: 30 x 13 inches private collection, England the painting is in overall very good and sound cond...

This exquisite work is an accomplished example of the type of portrait in vogue in England during the third quarter of the 17th century. There was a large demand for paintings in England and the demand for portraits was greatest. Many artists worked in this lucrative field, even artists who initially trained in the more respected field of history painting, such as Peter Lely, turned their attention to portraiture to meet this demand. Moreover, it was not uncommon for the British, even for men, to present a gift of one’s portrait to a friend - portraits were first and foremost a memento. Woman at court often vied with one another in displays of rich and fashionable clothing. The drapery was either painted from the customer’s own clothes or was perhaps a creation using fabrics loosely tacked together in the studio. This was a common practice of Lely and his studio props included swathes of fabric and pieces of cloth. The sitter’s sumptuous attire and gauze scarf, fastened by a large diamond brooch, is of the finest material and is representative of wealth. Pearls were an obligatory accompaniment since at least the 1630s and they are worn in abundance – in her hair, on her attire, as a necklace, and as pear-shaped earrings called unions d’excellence, reflecting the difficulty of finding perfectly matched pearls of such large size. They could range up to 20 millimetres in diameter. Her hairstyle help date the painting to the early 1660’s. Peter Lely, the son of a Dutch...

Judy Chicago Cloisonne Brooch of Hildegard of Bingen from The Dinner Party, 1987 Cloisonne brooch/pin with clasp on the back and Judy Chicago's incised signature and copyright 2 in d...

This exquisite portrait of a gentleman depicted in a sumptuous black coat edged with silver and slashed sleeves is an excellent example of the type of portrait fashionable in England and the Low Countries during the 17th century. The confident pose, striking orange sash - the colour of the house of Orange Nassau - and the leather gorget imbue the sitter with a sense of masculinity and power. The profusely decorated costume is of the highest quality and de rigueur of an elite class - the artist has carefully cultivated this portrait to emphasise the sitter’s wealth and standing in the society that he belonged to. The casual pose, with one arm resting on a hip, is much less formal than earlier decades, and it speaks of ‘sprezzatura’ – one’s appearance should not appear laborious, but instead, effortless. The oil on cradled panel portrait can be dated to circa 1650 based on the hairstyle and the attire - small falling collar, short doublet (doublets reduced in size to just below the ribcage in the late 1650’s), and the type of slashed sleeves with the sleeve seams left open to reveal the white fabric. The demand for portraits in the Netherlands was great in the 17th century. Bartholemeus van der Helst was considered to be one of the leading portrait painters of the Dutch Golden Age surpassing even Rembrandt as the most sought-after portraitist in Harlaam. The Dutch Golden Age, roughly spanning the 17th century, was a period when Dutch trade, science, military, and art were among the most acclaimed in the world. Dutch explorers charted new territory and settled abroad. Trade by the Dutch East-India Company thrived, and war heroes from the naval battles were decorated and became national heroes. During this time, The Dutch Old Masters began to prevail in the art world, creating a depth of realistic portraits of people and life in the area that has hardly been surpassed. The Golden Age painters depicted the scenes that their discerning new middle-class patrons wanted to see. This new wealth from merchant activities and exploration combined with a lack of church patronage, shifted art subjects away from biblical genres. Still life’s of items of everyday objects, landscapes, and seascapes reflecting the naval and trade power that the Republic enjoyed were popular. The new wealthy class were keen to have their portraits commissioned and many artists worked in this lucrative field. Such was the popularity of art that everyone had a painting, even the humble butcher, and hundreds of thousands of paintings were produced. By tradition the sitter is Maarten Tromp (1598-1653) who was an Admiral in the Dutch Navy (the reverse of the portrait contains an old handwritten inscription “van Tromp”). Certainly, the distinctive orange sash is similar to those worn by officers of the Dutch army in the Netherlands who served under the Princes of Orange and the House of Nassau. However, it should be noted that the physiognomy differs from other images of Tromp. Tromp was the oldest son of Harpert Maertensz, a naval officer and captain. He joined the Dutch navy as a lieutenant in July 1622 and was later promoted from captain to Lieutenant-Admiral of Holland and West Frisia in 1637. In 1639, during the Dutch struggle for independence from Spain, Tromp defeated a large Spanish fleet bound for Flanders at the Battle of the Downs, which marked an enormous change - the end of Spanish naval power. He was killed in action during the First Anglo-Dutch War in 1653 where he commanded the Dutch fleet in the battle of Scheveningen. Gloves were an absolutely vital accessory and the elaborate pair in this portrait are embellished with threads of silk and precious metals and salmon-coloured lining. He wears only one glove and holds the other, providing an opportunity to better display the cuffs and detail on his right wrist and forearm. The gloves are probably made from the most prized leather which came from Spain, in particular from Cordova. Cordovan leather was tanned with a special vegetal process that left it both highly impermeable and divinely soft. King Charles I, posed in a rather relaxed manner for Daniel Mytens’s portrait in 1631, is wearing gloves and boots in matching Cordovan leather. The hide is thick, but you can see just how supple it is from the way the gauntlet dimples and the long boot legs fold over themselves, rippling and wrinkling at the ankles. Apart from keeping hands warm the use of gloves during the 15th through the 19th centuries were full of symbolism and they were worn regardless of the season. They kept the skin unblemished - soft, smooth hands were considered highly attractive. This combination of necessity and proximity to bare skin made gloves a deeply personal gift and they took on a strong symbolic significance and were regarded as emblematic of fidelity and loyalty for hundreds of years. Such was the importance of their symbolism was that some gloves were never intended to be worn at all. Their luxury made them ideal gifts at court, and so in the 15th and 16th centuries, ambassadors often presented them as symbols of loyalty. Until the mid-19th century, it was customary to give gloves as tokens to guests at weddings and to mourners at funerals. Gentleman often gifted their bride-to-be with a pair of gloves (the obligatory gift) and were handed over at the betrothal and put on display before the wedding took place. It was probably their direct contact with the skin that led to the eroticism of gloves. Not only were pairs often exchanged between lovers, but from the 16th to the 18th centuries, it was common practice to remove one glove and give it as a gift to a favourite. The idea of the item being presented still warm from the wearer’s hand is certainly suggestive. Following the death of King George IV, his executors purportedly found over a thousand mismatched ladies’ gloves among his possessions. The sentiment of a 17th-century poem reveals the popularity of the practice: “Come to our wedding to requite your loves / Shew us your hands and we’ll fit you with gloves.” Such generosity might be pricey for the hosts, but gloves of varying quality could be offered depending on the status of the recipient. Pairs made with the finest Spanish leather might be reserved for immediate family, while coarse sheep’s leather could be distributed among the servants and tradesmen. The apportioning of quality according to class provided a very clear message of the gloves’ intended use. For refined guests, they were decoration; for the lower classes, they were functional. Bartholomeus van der Helst...

This magnificent grand-scale work, offered by Titan Fine Art, formed part of a collection of family pictures and heirlooms of the Rivers Baronets and their descendants for over 325 years, before it was dispersed by the last in the line in 1988. The work was painted by the most technically proficient painter in England after the death of Van Dyck, and the dominant court painter to Charles II and James, Duke of York, Sir Peter Lely. It is no surprise that for years Lely had no serious rivals, was enormously influential and successful, and one of the country’s most important painters – and his work influenced countless artists over generations. The exquisite carved and gilded auricular frame is an astounding work of art in itself. The sitters in this exquisite double portrait are Sir John Rivers, who succeeded as the 3rd Baronet Chafford in 1657 (c.1638 - c. 1679), and his wife, Lady Anne Hewitt (c.1640-c.1689). They are seated in an outdoor setting beside a fountain modelled as a female figure with water issuing into a scallop-shell. The water, the elaborate sculpted fountain with its scallop-edged bowl, and the open shell in her hand are symbols of fertility - as such they make an appropriate allusion to Lady Anne’s potential as wife and mother, recalling Proverbs, chapter 5, verse 18: “Let thye fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of thye youth”. This reference was realised, as Sir John and Lady Anne produced at least six children; their son George (1665-1734) became 4th Baronet of Chafford. The composition, thus, represents a celebration of marriage and was likely commissioned around the time of the betrothal (the marriage took place 26th Feb 1662 or 1663). The statues in the left margin are 'Youth and 'Old Age' and are a typical form of Memento Mori reminding virile young man that even they will lose their youth and grow old. The Rivers family, originally of Kent, traces its history to Sir Bartholomew Rivers, in the reign of Edward IV. The family included several prominent members including several knights, a Commander in the King's Army, a steward of a ducal estate, a Lord-Mayor of London, and an M.P. John Rivers (c.1659-c.1651) was made 1st Baronet of Chafford in 1622 by King James I. The Chafford estate was the family seat and it remained so until the early 1700s with the death of Sir George Rivers, 4th Baronet (1665–1734), whose sons had all died. The Chafford estate was left to his daughters while the baronetcy passed to nephew John Rivers, 5th Baronet (c. 1718–1743), and then Sir John’s brother, Sir Peter Rivers-Gay, 6th Baronet (c. 1721–1790). Upon Sir Peter Rivers Gay's death the estate passed to his eldest son, Sir Thomas Rivers Gay, 7th Baronet (c. 1770–1805). Sir Thomas, dying in 1805 with no children, bequeathed the estate to his mother Dame Martha Rivers Gay, who managed the estate until 1834 when she settled it on the then Sir Henry Rivers, 9th Baronet (c. 1779–1851) her younger son, before dying shortly thereafter in 1835. Sir Henry had married in 1812 to Charlotte Eales, with whom he had 6 sons and 8 daughters. Upon his death in 1851 the estate passed to his eldest surviving son Sir James Francis Rivers, 10th Baronet (1822–1869). Sir James married Catherine Eastcott in 1867 but died childless in 1869, and the estate passed to his only surviving brother Sir Henry Chandos Rivers, 11th Baronet (1834–1870) but he died a year later in 1870 also childless; with no male heir the Baronetcy was therefore extinguished. The estate was bequeathed, in trust, by Sir Henry Chandos Rivers to Thomas Frederick Inman, a solicitor of Bath, who then managed the estate as a trustee on behalf of Sir Henry Chandos Rivers' sister Katherine Rivers (c.1826-1895). It then passed to Katherine River’s daughter, Katherine Wall (born c.1855), who had also inherited Worthy Park House from her father, George Alfred Ellis Wall (1825-1875). Until 1958 our portrait is known to have hung at Worthy Park House. Upon Katherine Wall’s death, the Rivers estate passed to her daughter, Katherine Eleonora Rivers Fryer (1889-1963), who married Colonel James Alexander Butchart 1877-1853. In 1958 the family sold Worthy Park House but our portrait was loaned to Southampton Museum and Art Gallery. After the death of Katherine and Colonel James, the estate was left to their only son, Charles Bruce Rivers Butchart (1917-2005) and upon Charles’ retirement to a nursing home in 1988, and without heirs, our portrait, along with the residual assets of the Rivers estate were sold, thus ending over 325 years of continual family ownership. Lady Anne Rivers is thought to have been born circa 1640. She was the fourth child of the second marriage of Sir Thomas Hewitt (or Hewett) (1606-1662), 1st Baronet of Pishobury, Herts, and his wife Margaret Lytton (died 1689). Sir Thomas was an English landowner and M.P. for Windsor and upon the English Restoration...