Elizabeth (Jenks) Beaufoy, later Elizabeth Pycroft

Maker Thomas Gainsborough (British, 1727-1788)

SitterSitter: Elizabeth (Jenks) Beaufoy, later Elizabeth Pycroft (British, christened 1759 - died 1824)

Collections

Grand Manner Portraiture

ClassificationsPAINTINGS

Dateca.1780

Mediumoil on canvas

Dimensions91 x 60 in. (231.1 x 152.4 cm.)

DescriptionIn this full-length portrait, Lady Elizabeth Beaufoy is shown in a wooded landscape, glancing to her right. Dressed in flattering apparel, the sitter gracefully readjusts her floating scarf.

Credit LineThe Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens

Status

On view

Label TextThe celebrated beauty Elizabeth Beaufoy wears the stiffly coiffed high-dressed hair then in fashion, ornamented with a strand of pearls. Gainsborough intended this painting to be enjoyed both up close and at a distance. Viewed at close range, the animated, unblended brushstrokes create the illusion of flickering movement. At a distance, the eye instinctively blends the roughly applied pigments into an overall unity.

Bibliography

British paintings at the Huntington

Object number24.1