A study of a boy with a dog

Hunt executed a series of watercolours of children during the 1830s. The depiction of a boy with a dog, often a terrier, is typical of Hunt's work. The boy depicted in the present watercolour would appear to be one of the three Swain brothers who doubled as footmen and models for Hunt from about 1830-1844. Their services were remembered in Hunt's will, which provided legacies of ten pounds each to John and William Swain.