Old Master and British Works on Paper

Old Master and British Works on Paper

View full screen - View 1 of Lot 173. Portrait of a lady, traditionally identified as Miss Boddington.

John Russell, R.A.

Portrait of a lady, traditionally identified as Miss Boddington

Lot Closed

July 6, 01:31 PM GMT

Estimate

8,000 - 12,000 GBP

Lot Details

Description

John Russell, R.A.

Guildford 1745 - 1806 Hull

Portrait of a lady, traditionally identified as Miss Boddington


Pastel, held in a fine gilt-wood and gesso frame;

signed and dated upper left: J. Russell R.A. / 1791

905 by 695 mm

Possibly by descent until,
Mr and Mrs Michael Truell, Somerset, by circa 1957,
hence by family descent to the present owner
N. Jeffares, Dictionary of pastellists upon 1800, on-line edition: J.64.1192

The sitter is seen at a fine table, a silver ink well on its polished surface, while behind a bucolic landscape sweeps into the distance.


Russell was Britain's foremost artist in pastel. With its complex composition, its masterly treatment of different textures and materials, and the sympathetic portrayal of the sitter, the present work stands out as a particularly fine example of his work.