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Lot Essay
Joshua Reynolds' earliest known self-portrait is an intensely private, contemplative drawing. Drawn around 1740, shortly after he commenced an apprenticeship in the studio of the portrait-painter Thomas Hudson (1701-1779), it is far removed from his later, more public self-portraits in oil. The artist’s questioning expression is of course not aimed at the viewer, but at his own reflection in the mirror as he struggles to capture his features on the page. Although he was only beginning his artistic training, Reynolds had read Jonathan Richardson’s seminal Theory of Painting prior to his arrival in London, and the influence of Richardson’s portrait head studies in chalk, as well as those by Lely, Kneller and Dahl, is evident here. The slight turn of the head and direct gaze reflect Richardson's ideas that ‘both sides of the face [must] answer well to each other’ whilst avoiding being identical, which enhances the sense of life, vivacity and animation.
Another chalk drawing made ten years later, shortly after Reynolds’ arrival in Rome (British Museum, 1897,0615.1, fig. 1), portrays a young man confident of both his artistic ability and his place in the world. These are the only two drawings of this type in Reynolds’ oeuvre, at each end of his time as an apprentice in Hudson’s studio, providing a fascinating insight into his development as an artist.
The study of Diana on the verso of the sheet is a new discovery. It probably derives from a print and is remarkably competent for such an early drawing. Hudson was a great collector of Old Master prints and drawings, from which Reynolds was allowed to copy before being allowed to start to draw from the life.
This sheet remained in Reynolds’ possession until it was inherited by his niece, Mary Palmer, who lived with him at Leicester Fields from 1773, taking charge of his household until his death. She inherited much of his property and work, including five self-portraits in oil from different periods of his life. In 1806 she gave this drawing to George Simon, 2nd Earl Harcourt, a patron and close friend of Reynolds, who had redesigned the interiors and gardens of the family seat at Nuneham Park. Reynolds often stayed there, describing it as ‘irresistible’.
Another chalk drawing made ten years later, shortly after Reynolds’ arrival in Rome (British Museum, 1897,0615.1, fig. 1), portrays a young man confident of both his artistic ability and his place in the world. These are the only two drawings of this type in Reynolds’ oeuvre, at each end of his time as an apprentice in Hudson’s studio, providing a fascinating insight into his development as an artist.
The study of Diana on the verso of the sheet is a new discovery. It probably derives from a print and is remarkably competent for such an early drawing. Hudson was a great collector of Old Master prints and drawings, from which Reynolds was allowed to copy before being allowed to start to draw from the life.
This sheet remained in Reynolds’ possession until it was inherited by his niece, Mary Palmer, who lived with him at Leicester Fields from 1773, taking charge of his household until his death. She inherited much of his property and work, including five self-portraits in oil from different periods of his life. In 1806 she gave this drawing to George Simon, 2nd Earl Harcourt, a patron and close friend of Reynolds, who had redesigned the interiors and gardens of the family seat at Nuneham Park. Reynolds often stayed there, describing it as ‘irresistible’.