Rose (Gardiner) Milles

Maker George Romney (British, 1734-1802)

SitterSitter: Rose (Gardiner) Milles (British, 1757 - 1835)

Collections

ClassificationsPAINTINGS

Date1780-1783

Mediumoil on canvas

Dimensions94 x 58 3/4 in. (238.8 x 149.2 cm.)

DescriptionStanding right of center, full-length, three-quarters left, her right elbow on a pedestal, her left by her side, holding a fold of her dress. She stands on her left leg, the right crossed over and resting on her toe. Light-brown hair, showing the lower part of the ear, dressed high with a gold-and-blue ribbon; curls on the nape. Dark-gray eyes. White, classical gown with blue sash; a rose cloak draping the pedestal and covering her back. Tree trunks and foliage in right and center background; sky to left; low horizon on left, with a grove on a slope.

Credit LineThe Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens

Label TextThis portrait was painted on the occasion of Rose Gardiner’s marriage to Jeremiah Milles, whose portrait also hangs in this gallery. Resting one elbow on a pillar, Rose Gardiner Milles paraphrases a pose frequently found in ancient Greek sculpture and vase paintings. The ideal of classical simplicity seems to have motivated Romney’s choices, from the loose arrangement of Milles’s hair and the fresh-scrubbed appearance of her face to the quiet, restrained positioning of her hands. Unlike the bold gestures Romney used in Jeremiah Milles’s portrait to express his sitter’s confidence and achievement, those of his wife are undemonstrative and convey no information about her personality or abilities.

Status

On view

Object number14.4