Henrietta Read, later Henrietta Meares

Maker Thomas Gainsborough (British, 1727-1788)

SitterSitter: Henrietta Read, later Henrietta Meares (British, born 1760)

Collections

ClassificationsPAINTINGS

Dateca.1777

Mediumoil on canvas

Dimensions89 1/4 x 56 3/8 in. (226.7 x 143.2 cm.)

DescriptionStanding center, full-length, full-front, the head three-quarters right. She leans her left elbow on a plinth, the hand hanging down; her right hand rests on the left forearm. Her feet crossed, the left in front poised on the toe. Dark, lightly powdered hair, dressed high with a gauze spangled scarf; curls fall on the shoulders. Dark-hazel eyes and brows. She wears a low-necked dress of palest collar. At her breast a gold locket with cameo or portrait. Pale-silvery shoes with gold fringe. Background of stormy sky; tree trunks left and right behind figure. Right, a plinth with a large vase, convolvulus, and foliage.

Credit LineThe Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens

Label TextIn the mid-18th century, British artists developed a distinctive type of portraiture known today as the Grand Manner. Like this work, Grand Manner portraits were large in size, and meant to demonstrate the importance of a family’s lineage. Many were hung in the formal rooms and hallways of great British houses. Henrietta Read’s grandfather, a wealthy brewer, commissioned Gainsborough to paint this portrait – as well as those of other family members – as part of a dynastic display. In a pose that recalls 17th-century court portraits, Henrietta drapes part of her lilac gown over a stone plinth, providing a cushioned support for her elbow and revealing her white silk petticoat. The pink, cream, and charcoal of her delicate gown admirably complement her complexion and dark hair color, and provide a striking foil to her bold black eyebrows and dark brown eyes.

Status

On view

Object number24.2