Monk’s House, where this painting hangs, was bought in 1919 by the writer Virginia Woolf and her husband, the political activist, journalist and editor Leonard Woolf. Its tranquil location in the village of Rodmell, three miles south-east of Lewes, afforded them a relaxing space away from the bustle of London.
Hilda Montalba was an English-born artist, one of four daughters of the Swedish-born artist Anthony Rubens Montalba. In the later part of the nineteenth century the family was based in Venice having moved there from their home in Notting Hill. The landscapes and the citizens of Venice proved a fruitful source of inspiration much as they had done for artists for centuries before this.
This portrait of Sarah Lethieullier portrayed as the mythological figure Diana is one of a pair commissioned by her husband Sir Matthew Fetherstonhaugh. Its complimentary painting is a portrait of himself dressed as a hunter.
Princess Charlotte Augusta of Wales was the only child of George, Prince of Wales (later to become King George IV) and Caroline of Brunswick. If she had outlived both her grandfather, King George III, and her father, she would have become Queen of the United Kingdom, but tragically she died following childbirth on 6 November 1817 aged just 21.
Many art collectors in the eighteenth century preferred to purchase paintings which were in pairs or sets so that they could be hung sympathetically to the layout of furniture in their houses.
During the eighteenth century the Grand Tour was an essential journey through France and Italy which wealthy young men would take in search of art, culture and some vital life experience.
This portrait shows Mrs. Mary Maud Foot with her three children relaxing in their garden at Church House in Pulborough, West Sussex, around 1902. Mary is seated next to her daughter Enid whilst her two older sons Leslie and Eric are placed further in the background. Not featured is their father, Dr Ernest Foot, who established a practice in the village some years earlier.
The inspiration for this painting came from a series of four poems written by the Scottish author James Thomson. Each poem took a different season as its theme and were published one season at a time between 1726 and 1730. The poems proved to be extremely influential and many artists were inspired to produce works based on them, including Thomas Gainsborough and J. M. W. Turner.
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries it was usual for upper class young men of sufficient means to undertake a Grand Tour of Europe. The trip served as a rite of passage, exposing the young men to the cultural and artistic highlights of the Renaissance and thus extending their education and worldliness.
This large and striking portrait of Lady Egerton was completed in 1894 by the noted Florentine artist Michele Gordigiani. The painting was commissioned by Gertrude’s father, Earl Egerton of Tatton to mark her marriage to Arnold Keppel, 8th Earl of Albemarle. Gordigiani trained at the Academy I Florence. He served his apprenticeship in the studio of Luigi Mussini and moved to Paris in 1860 at the invitation of the Countess of Castiglione.
Michael Escolme 