Unknown

French School, 17th Century, 'Portrait of the Marquise de Grugieres', oil canvas

Attributed to Pierre Paul Prud’hon (French, 1758-1823) 'La belle musicienne' Oil on canvas, oval Signed ‘P. P. Prudon’ (lower left) 28.3/4 x 23.1/2 in. (73 x 59.5 cm.) Pierre Paul Prud'hon is considered a prime example of early French Romanticism. He was born as the seventh and last child of a master tailor. At the age of 16 he was a pupil of the painter and sculptor Francois Devosge. After finishing his studies he moved to Paris, where he first worked for an engraver and became friends with the Baron of Joursanvault, who became his patron. He also made a friendship with the "incorruptible", the politician and revolutionary Maximilien de Robespierre. Despite important friendships and the care of some cardinals, Prud'hon plunges into loneliness and melancholy. He has a good reputation and produces allegorical paintings, but his attachment to Robespierre forces him to leave the French capital. He now lives in the Free County of Burgundy, where he makes portraits and illustrations for Pierre Didot, the owner of the printing house. After a few years he moved back to Paris and his career received a new impetus. In the Louvre, Prud'hon is provided with a studio in which he paints "La sagesse et la vérité descendant sur la terre" (Wisdom and Truth descend to earth) for one year, as well as some ceilings of the Louvre. The government assigns him a studio in the Sorbonne, where his wife Jeanne, whom he married at the age of 19, comes looking for him. To escape her, he asks the museum director for protection. In 1808 he wrote "La justice et la vengeance divine poursuivant le crime" (Justice and divine revenge pursue the crime). In the same year he is also named Knight of the Legion of Honour and is able to break with his grumpy wife once and for all. He soon reconnects with his student and painter of neoclassicism Constance Mayer. Pierre is commissioned to paint a portrait of the Empress and wife of Napoleon, Joséphine de Beauharnais, which can still be seen today in the Louvre. He also paints the small "Roi de Rome" (King of Rome). In 1816 the Academy of Fine Arts elected him a member, where he took over the armchair in the painting section of François-André Vincent. A few years later his depressed wife commits suicide, and full of pain Prud'hon finishes her last work "Une famille malheureuse" (Engl. An Unhappy Family) and exhibits it. He himself dies soon afterwards and is buried in Paris. Many renowned artists admire Prud'hon for his "clair-obscur", the chiaroscuro painting...

Circle of Godfrey Kneller (German, 1646 – 1723) Amelie Sophia von Wendt as Aphrodite in the judgement of Paris, later as King George II’s Courtesan, bestowed the title of the Countess of Yarmouth. oil on canvas 34.1/4 x 41 in. (87 x 104 cm.) Provenance: Historically at Bruggen Castle...

Spanish School (16th century) Saint Fermin of Pamplona oil on canvas 40.1/8 x 32.½ in. (102 x 82.5 cm.) Condition: oil on canvas re-lined. Extensive surface dirt and varnish discolouration, craquelure throughout, possible stretcher bar marks. Probable retouches in a 17th century wood frame with painted decoration to corners and central spans. The frame has abrasions and knocks but suits the painting well. There is some shrinkage to some of the paint on the frame. Following some detailed research, we are confident this is a portrait of San Fermin...

A large and very elegant portrait of a British lady thought to be Dame Anna Neagle, the British actress and singer. English School, 20th Century Portrait of a society lady thought t...

War Van Overstraeten (Belgian, 1891 – 1981) Anne Marie Oil on canvas Signed ‘W. van Overstraeten’ (upper right), and inscribed ‘Anne Marie 1939’ (on the stretcher) 24 x 20 in. (60.5 ...

A bold and striking portrait of 'Athene' by the notable Modern British artist Ewart Johns. This painting is characterised by strong orange / brown colours, highlighted by whites and...

Portrait of the Hon. James Thynne (c. 1680-1704), full-length, in the gardens of Longleat House, seated beside a fountain, holding a shell beneath water spouting from a horn blown by a cherub on a dolphin. A glimpse of part of Longleat House can be seen upper left. Oil on canvas in a period giltwood frame, decorated with leaves and acorns. C. 1682. Dimensions: 145 x 123cm (57 x 48in) in frame Provenance: Ex Longleat House, Wiltshire Private collection, Bath James Thynne was the youngest son of Thomas Thynne, 1st Viscount Weymouth and Frances Finch of Longleat House, Wiltshire. He died in his youth and his Aunt, Anne Kingsmill Finch, Countess of Winchilsea (1661-1720), wrote a moving poem on his death. He was buried in the family vault at Longbridge Deverill, Wiltshire. A mezzotint of this painting by William Faithorne the Younger is held in the Royal Collection. Johann Kerseboom (d.1708) was the nephew of Frederick Kerseboom and first worked in Germany before coming to England in the 1680's where his sitters included the 'Electress Sophia Dorothea' (known from a mezzotint by William Faithorne). His early works were influenced by William Wissing...

Portrait of a young girl, full-length, wearing a blue silk gown, standing on a terrace beside a classical urn holding a branch with blossom. Attributed to John Riley...

Portrait of a Clerical Gentleman Italian artist, mid 18th century Circle of Giovanni Battista Carboni (1725-1790) oil on canvas, unframed canvas: 26 x 22 inches provenance: private c...

Presented by Titan Fine Art, this elegant and beautiful portrait depicts Abigail Hay, Lady Dupplin, Countess of Kinnoull; it is an excellent example of English portraiture from the f...

Indistinctly signed and dated In the first quarter of the 17th century a new form of flower painting was developed in Flemish painting, which, recreated by a large group of artists and workshops, would achieve considerable success throughout the century in much of Europe: the garland of flowers surrounding a central figure. Brueghel de Velurs was the initiator of this type of composition, however, it was his pupil, Daniel Seghers, who was the dominant figure in this specialised production and the creator of a prototype that would serve as a model for the numerous artists who followed in his wake. It seems undeniable that the artist of the present painting had seen the Garlands of Flowers Surrounding a Medallion Depicting the Triumph of Love by Daniel Seghers and Domenico Zampieri (now in the Musée du Louvre in Paris). In our painting, the present floral wreath encircles a carved cartouche within which sits Saint Dorothy of Caesarea and the attribute which often accompanies her in art, a basket of roses. The extremely delicate flowers have been rendered in meticulous detail, so that every species can be identified from exotic tulips to roses, irises and forget-me-nots; this obvious attention to naturalism is inherited from the Flemish manner. Each flower is so precise and refined that they are an individual study in their own right. The still-lifes are from the hand of Jan Anton van den Baren, with the central figures by another accomplished hand. Van den Baren’s arrangement of flowers would have delighted connoisseurs in both Flanders and in Vienna, where the impossibility of their all blooming at the same time of year would have been understood as a further statement of the wonder and beauty of the divine. Van den Baren worked first in Brussels, where he collaborated with Erasmus Quellinus II for the figures in his works, before moving with Archduke Leopold Wilhelm, his patron, to Vienna in 1656, where he instead worked with fellow Flemish émigré painter Nikolaus van Hoy. The iconography relates to an eighth century legend where she was presented a basket of roses by a child. In addition to the brilliance of his handling of still-lifes Van den Baren played an important art historical role as Director of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm’s Picture Gallery in Vienna, then one of the greatest collections in the world and the core of what was to become the present collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. Van der Baren compiled an inventory of the collection in 1659, and his predecessor as Director of the Archduke’s Picture Gallery (when it was still housed in Flanders), David Teniers, depicted van der Baren (third from right) in his celebrated Archduke Leopold Willem in his gallery at Brussels, conserved at the Kunsthistorisches Museum. It is a shining example of the Flemish Baroque and is a very rare object indeed, considering there are only 14 paintings accepted as authentic works by this artist. We are grateful to Fred Meijer for confirming the attribution to Johannes Antonius van der Baren. A feature of this painting is its outstanding carved and gilded frame with a plethora of flowers and foliage. Titan Fine Art

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...