Pastel Paintings

Follower of Rosalba Carriera (Venice 1673 - there 1757) - Portrait of a lady. 51 x 42 cm without frame, 79 x 67 cm with frame. Antique pastel painting on paper, in a carved, perfor...

This charming British Old Master Regency pastel portrait painting is by Royal Academy artist John Russell RA. He trained under Cotes and was much influenced by his admiration for Rosalba Carriera, a female Venetian Rococo painter and specialist in pastels. He was a prolific exhibitor at the Royal Academy. This painting dates to 1786. The painting is of Mary Alexaphina Bushby (1776-1823). Our research has found that Mary was daughter of John and Grizzel Bushby and she had 11 siblings. She later married William Curre from Momouthshire. Mary died in 1823 aged 47 having had 10 children. Interestingly, Robert Burns addressed an unpublished poem to her, a copy of which the artist passed to the Dumfries Burns Club. It would be fascinating to see a copy of this poem and to understand more of their relationship Provenance. Labels with provenance details verso. Condition. Pastel on paper laid on canvas, image size is 27 inches by 22 inches and in good condition. Housed in its original gilt frame with original glass, 35 inches by 30 inches framed and in good condition. John Russell RA (1745-1806) was an English painter renowned for his portrait work in oils and pastels, and as a writer and teacher of painting techniques. Russell was born in Guildford, Surrey, the son of John Russell Snr., book and print seller and five times mayor of the town; his father was something of an artist, and drew and published two views of Guildford. Russell was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, and soon showed a strong inclination for art. He trained under Francis Cotes RA (of Cavendish Square, London), one of the pioneers of English pastel painting, and, like Cotes, was an admirer of the pastel drawings of Rosalba Carriera whose methods influenced his technique of "sweetening". At the age of 19 he converted to Methodism, which was the cause of tension with his family and with his teacher; he made no secret of his strong evangelical leanings and would attempt to preach and convert at every opportunity. Russell set up his own studio, in London, in 1767. He made the acquaintance of the notorious Dr. William Dodd, whose portrait he painted in 1768. He was introduced to Selina, Countess of Huntingdon, who unsuccessfully attempted to persuade him to give up painting and attend her Methodist ministers' training college at Trevecca in Wales. On 5 February 1770, he married Hannah Faden, daughter of a Charing Cross print and map seller...

This is a portrait of Mrs GOIS wife of the sculptor Edme GOIS. Genevieve FAVART (born BELLOT ) was a painter of portraits at the end of the XVIIIth century and at the beginning of t...

A pastel portrait of Lady Margaret Smith-Burges, later Countess Poulett (1754-1838) by Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830). Oval, pastel on paper 29.5 x 24cm (excluding frame), in an ornate giltwood and gesso frame with a coronet crest, circa 1785. Inscription on reverse ' Portrait in crayons by Sir Thomas Lawrence of the Dowr. Countess Poulett'. This is a rare and early work in Lawrence's career who as a child prodigy began working as a youth in pastels, moving on to work almost exclusively in oils after 1790. Margaret (born Burges) was the daughter of Ynyr Burges and Margaret Brown. She became the wife of Sir john Smith-Burges, 1st Baronet in 1771 and later after his death the wife of John, 4th Earl Poulett whom she married in 1816. During her first marriage, Margaret was a regular visitor to Bath and very likely sat for the young Lawrence whilst he was living there. Thomas Lawrence was born the son of an innkeeper who moved the family to Bath in 1779. His father, recognising his son's talent from an early age, advertised his services as a portraitist in the Bath Journal; 'Master Lawrence continues to take very striking Likenesses of Ladies and Gentlemen in the most pleasing attitudes, either in pencil or crayons'. The large number of potential sitters who had come to Bath 'for the season' or to 'take the waters' helped to support the family with a steady income and the child prodigy became very popular with aristocrats and the famous and wealthy. Hi sitters in Bath included Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire and the actress Sarah...

This very pretty drawing from a private Parisian collection is typical of Oudry's first period during which he produced a very large number of portraits, at a time when he was still ...

Pastel Portrait of A Child Playing With Her Dog This pastel portrait of a baby child is attributed to Daniel Gardner. This pastel on paper is mounted to canvas and measures 20 inch...

Portrait of a Boy is a French School 18th Century Pastel Painting. Measures 12.5" x 10" in frame, pastel on paper, charming unsigned rendering of a boy with a toy. Circa 1770-90.

This portrait of John Cosnan depicts him in the staff uniform of Adjutant General to the Expedition to Portugal in 1762. Considerable service in some notable campaigns, particularly ...

Pastel on paper onto canvas from the 19th century. The depicted dame might be Marie Antoinette, queen of France. Presented in a frame of 1800. Last quarter of the 18th century.