Lot 310
  • 310

Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A.

Estimate
30,000 - 40,000 GBP
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Description

  • Thomas Lawrence
  • Portrait of Sir William Forbes of Pitsligo, 6th Bt. of Pitsligo (1739-1806), half-length, wearing a black coat with a white stock, and the Order of Nova Scotia
  • oil on canvas

Literature

J. Farington, The Diary of Joseph Farington, J. Greig (ed.), London 1923, vol. II, p. 134 (19 August 1803: 'Lane called - Lawrence has painted one of his best heads, - a portrait of Sir Wm. Forbes. He finished it on Wednesday last');
List of Portraits at Fettercairn House, 1924, p. 13 (Hall, over Passage Door);
K. Garlick, Sir Thomas Lawrence, London 1954, p. 37;
K. Garlick (ed.), A catalogue of the paintings, drawings and pastels of Sir Thomas Lawrence. The Walpole Society, vol. XXXIX, Glasgow 1964, p. 81; 
K. Garlick, Sir Thomas Lawrence, Oxford 1989, p. 189, cat. no. 304.

Condition

The following condition report is provided by Hamish Dewar Ltd who are external specialists and not employees of Sotheby's: Structural Condition The canvas has been lined and this is providing a secure and stable structural support. The canvas has been stretched onto a keyed wooden stretcher. There is a pattern of drying craquelure throughout the composition and some areas of paint separation. Paint Surface The paint surface has a generally even varnish layer. There are a few tiny losses throughout the paint surface but these appear to be stable. There are a number of tiny black spots on the sitter's face and on his collar which appear to be on top of the varnish layers. Inspection under ultraviolet light shows thick and discoloured varnish layers with a few small spots of retouchings in the background to the right of the sitter's face, on his shoulder and tiny spots on his lapel. Older retouchings are just visible under ultraviolet light in the darker pigments. There are other small scattered retouchings, most of which appear to have been very carefully applied. There may be further retouchings which are not visible under ultraviolet indeer the discoloured varnish layers. Summary The painting would therefore appear to be in good and stable condition. The black spots could be simply removed and the tiny losses filled and retouched if required but no further intervention is required for reasons of conservation.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Catalogue Note

Sir William Forbes, sixth baronet of Pitsligo (1739-1806) was a banker, author and generous philanthropist. Beginning his career as an apprentice to the Coutts brothers in Edinburgh, reportedly spending only one night out of Edinburgh during his first five years, he was fully admitted to the firm in 1763. Forbes became an influential voice in the Merchant’s Company of Edinburgh and frequently acted as financial advisor to William Pitt the Younger (1759-1806), who offered him several parliamentary seats and, in 1799, an Irish peerage, but Forbes refused these honours. His paternal grandmother, Mary Forbes, was a sister of Alexander, 4th Lord Forbes of Pitsligo (1678-1762) (see lot 109), attainted after the Jacobite rising of 1745, and Forbes made it is his duty to restore the title and estate.

Sir William inherited the baronetcy of Nova Scotia from his father. When he succeeded to the arms of Pitsligo in 1781, he brought his philanthropic endeavours, already felt widely through Edinburgh, to Aberdeenshire, where he laid out the village of New Pitsligo and made ample provision for its residents. Forbes was known as a convivial conversationalist in both Scotland and London, where he was a member of Samuel Johnson's Literary Club and a friend of Sir Joshua Reynolds, for whom he also sat (National Galleries Scotland, Edinburgh).1

1. Accession number PG 1296; see D. Mannings, Sir Joshua Reynolds: A Complete Catalogue of His Paintings, New Haven and London 2000, vol. I, p. 199, cat. no. 658; reproduced vol. II, p. 553, plate 1484.