Sir Henry Raeburn

Striking 18th Century Portrait of the 12th Earl of Caithness

Aftrer Anthony VAN DYCK - maybe Studio (1599, Antwerp – 1641, London) Flemish Double Portrait of George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham (1628-1687) & Lord Francis Villiers (1629-1648) Oil on Canvas 170 x 147 cm Anthony Van Dyck (1599-1641) No painter has done more to define an era than Anthony van Dyck. He spent only seven and a half years of his short life (1599- 1641) in England. He grew up in Antwerp, where his precocious talent was recognised by Peter Paul Rubens, the greatest painter of his age. He worked in Rubens’s studio and imitated his style as a religious artist, painting biblical scenes redolent of the lush piety of the counter-reformation. But soon he was on the move. In 1620, he visited London for a few months, long enough to paint a history picture, The Continence of Scipio, for the royal favourite, George Villiers, Marquess of Buckingham, and a portrait of his other English patron, the great art collector, Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Arundel. After a stint in Italy, making imposing portraits of the wealthy aristocracy and sketching and copying works by Titian, he returned to the Spanish Netherlands in 1627, becoming court artist to Archduchess Isabella before departing for The Hague in 1631 to paint the Dutch ruler Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange. Charles I’s invitation in 1632 led Van Dyck back to London where he was knighted, paid an annual salary of £200 and installed in a house in Blackfriars with a special jetty at which the royal barge might tie up when the King was visiting his studio. By this time Van Dyck was recognised as the leading court painter in Europe, with Velazquez at the court of Philip IV of Spain his only rival. He also excelled as a superbly observant painter of children and dogs. Van Dyck’s notoriety in depicting children led to the introduction of groups of children without their parents as a new genre into English painting (amongst other new genres). For the next 300 years, Van Dyck was the major influence on English portraiture. Nearly all the great 18th Century portraitists, from Pompeo Batoni and Allan Ramsay to Thomas Gainsborough and Joshua Reynolds, copied Van Dyck’s costumes, poses and compositions. George Duke of Buckingham & his brother Francis Villiers Painted in 1635, this double portrait was originally commissioned by Charles I, who raised the two brothers after their father, George Villiers, was assassinated in 1628. Together with their sister, Lady Mary Villiers, they enjoyed the King’s favour absolutely. Francis whose absolute ‘inimitable handsomeness’ was noted by Marvell (who was killed in a skirmish near Kingston upon Thames). The young duke who commanded a regiment of horse at the Battle of Worcester, remained closely associated with Charles II, held a number of high offices after the Restoration and was one of the most cynical and brilliant members of the King’s entourage, immortalised as ‘Zimri’ in Dryden’s Absalom and Achitopbel. As a young man he had sold his father’s great collection of pictures in the Spanish Netherlands, many of them to the Archduke Leopold Willhelm. Painted for Charles I and placed near the portrait of their sister in the Gallery at St James’ Palace. The handling of both costumes is very rich, and the heads are very carefully and sensitively worked. That of the younger boy in particular is more solidly built up than the lower part of the figure. A preparatory drawing for the younger boy is in the British Museum. There are copies at, e.g., Highclere Castle...

Sir Nathaniel Dance-Holland (1750-1811) was an English portrait painter and one of the founding members of the Royal Academy in 1768. Justly celebrated in his lifetime he won several...

Attributed to Gainsborough Dupont (1754 - 1797, British) Portrait of Owen Ormsby, bust-length, in a brown coat, with slightly later inscription identifying the sitter oil on canvas 2...

John Wootton (1686 - 1764) The Bloody-Shouldered Arabian Oil on canvas Inscribed below, 'Bred by Lord Oxford in 1755 & Sire of many famous Racers, including the Duke of Bolton's 'Swe...

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Ursula Krauss is a German artist born in 1984 who lives & works in Nuremberg in Germany.

ARTIST: MARLENA NIZIO (1959-2021) Studied painting under prof. Jerzy Nowosielski at the Academy of Fine Arts in Cracow. She received her diploma in 1...

Rare one of a kind Pop Art portrait painting of 80s and 90s pop icon Fabio done in silkscreen enamel oil on canvas. this is not numbered and is believed to be unique. Steven Alan Kaufman Or Steve Kaufman, 1960–2010 American pop artist, filmmaker, photographer and humanitarian.In 1975, Kaufman participated in a group graffiti Street Art show at the prestigious Whitney Museum of American Art.Kaufman participated with nine other New York City students in a cultural art exchange with students in Japan, resulting in his attaining a scholarship to the Parsons School of Design. As a teenager Kaufman was going to Studio 54 and associating with people from the 1970s New York City art community. Kaufman attended Manhattan's School of Visual Arts (SVA), where he met contemporary artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat. In 1981 Kaufman met Andy Warhol, who became a significant influence on the 19-year-old Kaufman, who worked as Warhohl's assistant at his studio, The Factory, producing original paintings and silkscreens. Kaufman designed theme parties for various nightclubs, sold his paintings to Calvin Klein and Steve Rubell, and participated in a group art show with pop artist Keith Haring, whom he had met at the SVA. Kaufman created the graphics for NBC's Saturday Night Live. Kaufman graduated from SVA with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and held art shows in London. Leaving Warhol's Factory, Kaufman established his own SAK Studio, hiring homeless New Yorkers to assist him. He painted portraits of three homeless persons for Transportation Display, Inc. that where later shown in 46 cities on bus billboards, helping to raise $4.72 million to benefit the homeless. Kaufman crated the first “Racial Harmony” mural in Harlem to raise attention of inner-city problems. He showed at the White Gallery as a tribute to those who died from AIDS. The “Say Without Art” tribute was based on this show. Kaufman also exhibited his works at the Loft Gallery in Tokyo, Japan.In 1993, Kaufman moved his studio to Los Angeles and began painting in a new style he called 'comic book pop art'. He used images of Superman, Batman, Spider-Man and others from both DC comics and Marvel comics. To assist him in his studio, Kaufman hired more than 100 ex-gang members released from prison.In 1995 Kaufman published works for Martin Lawrence Limited Editions, hand-embellishing works including limited editions of Beethoven and Marilyn Monroe. He painted portraits of Muhammad Aliand John Travolta, "who autographed their editions." Becoming the first artist create a bridge between Marvel Comics (Spiderman) and DC Comics (Superman), Kaufman worked with comic book artist and creator Stan Lee. Kaufman."As Warhol's assistant, I learned to silkscreen with oils that will last forever. Since his death, Steve Kaufman’s artwork has appeared in several television programs, art hotels...