Michael Dahl

Portrait of a Gentleman Holding Gloves c.1723, Antique Oil Painting MICHAEL DAHL

Circa 1723

These beautiful portraits were painted circa 1725 and are fine examples of the English eighteenth century portrait style. One sitter has been depicted wearing a simple blue silk dress and the other wears a red silk dress and a silk drapery in her hair. The artist utilised a restrained manner and chose to depict the subjects without jewellery or artificial adornments, and against plain backgrounds. Instead, the viewer can focus solely on the beauty of the sitters and the considerable talent of the artist. The effect achieved is 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. Contained within fine gilded antique frames. Jonathan Richardson...

Depicted with bow in hand and situated against an Arcadian backdrop this young gentleman represents a fine example of portraiture at the turn of the 18th century. Titan Fine Art...

In this portrait the artist has portrayed the boy as a fashionable young gentleman sitting in the grounds of his estate. Only the playful attention of a small dog suggests anything less than patrician dignity. It is possible that the artist’s presentation of the child was dictated by the sitter’s parents and is a product of the British practice of primogeniture, whereby the eldest son inherits everything: here, the proud heir and first of a new line is portrayed with the soon-to-be-his family estates in the background. The dog is probably the boy's pet but was also a popular symbol for fidelity, trust and loyalty in portraiture. Titan Fine Art...

This spectacular large portrait, presented by Titan Fine Art, was painted in 1714 when the artist was at the height of his artistic power. It is signed and dated by Schmutz (R. Schmutz p. 1714) and is an extremely rare and important addition to the little-known oeuvre of the artist, and further still, a wider knowledge of the artists that were active at the turn of the 18th century in England. The fact that there are successful engravings after portraits by Schmutz, such as the half-length portrait of the Comedian William Penkethman, created in 1709 further enhances the fact that he was an artist painting celebrated depictions of significant sitters. The discovery of this work may now lead to further research into Schmutz’s oeuvre. Meticulously rendered, the sitter is wearing a pink dress, holding a basket of fruit, whilst a parrot rests in her left hand. The beautiful arrangement of flowers in the urn was likely painted by another artist who specialised in floral painting – collaborations such as this were common. The painting abounds with ingenious flourishes and demonstrations of the painter's skill and superior pictorial technique. The graceful pose, sumptuous costume, rich colour, and brilliant technique are distinctive features of this portrait and it was a type that was in great demand during the 18th century, as it is today. Johann Rudolf Schmutz was born in Regensperg, Switzerland in 1670 and trained under the artist Mathais Füssli. At first Schmutz focused his training on historical paintings however quickly seeing that he was better at portraiture, which was also more profitable, he focused his study on this genre. Schmutz had heard of the success Sir Godfrey Kneller (1646 – 1723) was having in London and therefore left Switzerland to try and rival Kneller’s society portraits in Britain. Although few works are known by Schmutz, he was said to have been a success, and perhaps if he had lived longer, he may have been able to rival some of the great Court artists. His focus was on female portraiture, which is epitomised in this example, showing an elegant reclining female figure. By the turn of the century, this format of portraiture had become popular and similar examples can be seen by the artists Maria Verelst and Michael Dahl, often repeating the composition. By Schmutz’s death in 1715, he had a studio practice in Covent Garden where he was training the young John Ellys (1701 – 57), who went on to succeed Philip Mercier as the principal painter to Frederick, Prince of Wales. In comparing this portrait with the work of Ellys it is clear to see the inspiration taken, with similar compositional format and flesh tones. Held in an impressive Kent style carved and gilded antique frame with egg and dart motif. Provenance: Property of Beatrice Nellie Gillison Stayner (1912-1988) of The Grange...

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...

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

after HANS HOLBEIN THE YOUNGER 1497 – 1543 PORTRAIT OF WILLIAM WARHAM Oil on wood panel, laid to canvas Image size: 38 x 35 inches (89 x 71 cm) Hand made period style frame The hand...

Signed and dated, lower left: Par M. T./ Philiberte Montpetit/ 1794 Inscribed on the reverse of the stretcher: Mademoiselle Lange, de la Comédie Française...

Signed and dated, lower left: Louise Hersent/ 1823 Provenance: Private Collection, Chicago, by 1996 Private Collection, Florida This charming portrait of a young boy is the work of Louise-Marie-Jeanne Hersent, a little-known woman artist of the French Restoration often identified by her maiden name, Mauduit. While Hersent—as we will call her here following the signature on the painting—has been understudied, the known details of her life and career reveal that she held a privileged position in artistic life in the early nineteenth century in Paris. She exhibited at the Salon from 1810 until 1824, and in 1821 she married the painter Louis Hersent, a successful pupil of Jacques-Louis David who was patronized by Louis XVIII and Charles X. It is likely through her husband’s royal patronage that Hersent’s Louis XIV Visits Peter the Great was purchased for the Royal Collection in Versailles. In 1806, while still Louise Mauduit, she painted a portrait of Napoleon’s youngest sister, Pauline Bonaparte...

Dominicus van der Smissen Early 18th Century Portrait of Conrad Friedrich Hurlebusch Oil on canvas Image size: 20½ x 16¼ inches Period gilt frame This is a portrait of Conrad Friedrich Hurlebusch, composer, Kapellmeister and organist, whom Van der Smissen most probably portrayed during his stay in Hamburg, Brunswick or Amsterdam. The identification is based on the reproduction of the portrait which was engraved by Pieter Anthony Wakkerdak (1740- 1774). Van der Smissen has reduced the face of the sitters to an egg-shaped oval in three-quarter view, applying diminution to one half of the figure’s torso, which is farther away from the viewer. This partial side view, with the head turned to look at the viewer over the shoulder, creates spatial depth and brings the figure to life by avoiding the stiffness of a frontal depiction. Because the artist chose to highlight the figure from above, a distinct shadow is cast under the tip of the nose, in the shape of a triangle. This is an often recurring and almost ‘signature’-like feature in Van der Smissen’s oeuvre. Hurlebusch's garments are of a very high quality and serve to reflect the sitter’s wealth, status and elegance. During this period, gentlemen often shaved their heads in order to facilitate the wearing of a wig, which wouldbe worn with a suit. Here Hurlebusch has been depicted in a luxurious turban-like cap lined with lynx fur, a highly fashionable and expensive material at the time. Over his shirt, he wears a velvet fur-lined gown adorned with decorative clasps fashioned from silver braid. The elegant informality of his appearance can be seen in his unbuttoned shirt and the unfastened black ribbon hanging from his button hole, which has been artfully arranged into a fluttering drape by the portraitist. The Sitter Hurlebusch was born in Brunswick, Germany. He received the first instructions in his field from his father Heinrich Lorenz Hurlebusch, who was also a musician. As an organ virtuoso, he toured Europe, visiting Vienna, Munich and Italy. From 1723 to 1725 he was Kapellmeister in Stockholm; later he became Kapellmeister in Bayreuth and Brunswick, and lived in Hamburg from 1727 to 1742, where he had contact with fellow composers Johann Mattheson and Georg Philipp Telemann. He made his living composing, performing and teaching. In 1735 and 1736, he is believed to have visited Johann Sebastian Bach in Leipzig, who promoted Hurlebusch’s compositions as the local seller...

French painter (c. 1815) - Portrait of a gentleman, probably Napoleon in exile on the island of S. Elena. 109 x 89 cm without frame, 139.5 x 119.5 cm with frame. Oil on canvas, in ...

This superb late 18th century portrait oil painting is attributed to noted Scottish artist Alexander Nasmyth. Painted circa 1780 the sitter is of the Wagstaff family, either Thomas o...