Description
Circle of John Downman, British 1749/50-1824- Portraits of a lady wearing a feathered hat and a gentleman wearing a black hat, half-length; watercolours on paper, oval, each 13.8 x 10.5 cm., a pair (2). Provenance: Private Collection, UK. Note: The present pair resemble the portrait sketches by Downman, a prominent society painter who studied under Benjamin West (1738-1820) and was friends with Joseph Wright of Derby (1734-1797) and Richard Hurleston (c.1740-c.1780). The loose, sparing handling of the watercolour in the present works creates a sense of informality and spontaneity, imparting a sense of the sitters' presence, and recalling Downman's watercolour portrait of Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, completed c.1780.
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