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Anton Raphael Mengs

Portrait of an English Gentleman, ca. 1754

Now On View

Description

Maker

  • Anton Raphael Mengs, 1728-1779, German

Title

Portrait of an English Gentleman

Year

ca. 1754

Medium

Oil on canvas

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • oil paint

Supports

  • canvas

Dimensions

99.1 x 73.3 cm (39 x 28 7/8 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Signed UL:Ant. Raffael Mengs

Place

Italy

Type

  • Paintings

Credit

Corporate Membership Fund

Object Number

57.281

About

The subject of this portrait is believed to be Henry Willoughby, later 5th Baronet Middleton (1726–1800). A member of a wealthy and aristocratic English family, he typifies the privileged young men whose classical education was crowned by a “Grand Tour” of Europe, a studious exploration of art and architecture that culminated in Rome. Painted in the artist’s studio in Rome but portrayed as if in his own study, the sitter appears in a simple cuffed coat with matching waistcoat and a fine ruffled shirt. In one hand he holds a striped silk scarf; in the other he lifts a book, a symbol of his interest in learning. The artist Anton Raphael Mengs excelled in painting Europeans in opulent attire and was among the most admired portraitists in 18th-century Rome. For his young British patrons, he devised a complementary formula that rejected high fashion and projected an attitude of enlightenment.

Signed UL:Ant. Raffael Mengs

Italy
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Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Intermission

December 16, 2016 - July 2, 2017

From the Reserve I

April 9 - August 3, 1994

European Painting and Sculpture, circa 1770-1937

October 18, 1991 - January 26, 1992

European Galleries

This sitter, believed to be Henry Willoughby, later the fifth Baron Middleton, typifies the young English aristocrat whose education was crowned by a Grand Tour, an exploration of European art and architecture that culminated in Italy. Painted in the artist’s studio in Rome, the sitter is portrayed as if he were back in his own study, gazing up from his reading.

In the 1700s, Mengs was one of the most admired portraitists in Rome, and he excelled in painting subjects in elegant attire. For his young British patrons, however, he emphasized their intellectual enlightenment, suggested here by the prominence of the book.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Portrait of an English Gentleman with the accession number of 57.281. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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