A bay Hunter with a Poodle in a Stable

John Ferneley was one of the most gifted painters of sporting subjects of his generation. He was born at Thrussington, Leicestershire, the youngest son of a wheelright: his artistic ability was first recognised by John, 5th Duke of Rutland, who noticed some pictures which he had painted on the side of a cart on which his father, to whom he was apprenticed, had been working. The Duke is said to have persuaded Ferneley's father to allow him to become a pupil of Ben Marshall, himself of Leicestershire origin, who was then working in London. Ferneley studied and lodged with Marshall between 1801 and 1804, and was enrolled by him in the Royal Academy Schools. They developed a lasting friendship. After leaving Marshall's studio in 1804, Ferneley spent time in Norfolk and then at Lincoln where he first met Thomas Assheton Smith, who became a life-long friend, and for whom he painted several celebrated pictures of the Quorn. In 1809, returning from a year long stay in Ireland, he married Sally Kettle, of Gaddesby, near Melton. In 1814 they settled in Melton Mowbray, where he built a studio and later a house, Elgin Lodge.

At Melton Mowbray, the Quorn, Belvoir and Cottesmore hunts provided Ferneley with a steady stream of patronage and his work became very fashionable. His patrons included many of the most famous sportsmen of the day, and members of some of the most prominent aristocratic families.

Of the six children from his first marriage, Claude Lorraine, John and Sarah all became artists, while Charles, his son from his second marriage, to a Miss Allen, became a notable pioneer of photography.