Roy Precious - Antiques & Fine Art has dated this piece to the 18th Century.
This is a fine portrait and typical of Kneller's work at this time.
He wears a large and very fashionable wig .. such wigs were expensive, the larger, the more costly. It is from this fashion that to this day rich and influential people are called 'bigwigs'.
The sitter's face is beautifully and carefully painted, whilst in the chaotic curls of the wig the artist has enjoyed a sense of freedom and a painterly delight in the use of the medium.
Kneller was deluged by demand for his portraits and the only way he could keep pace with the demand was by using his army of assistants, many of whom went on to be successful artists in their own right.
SIR GODFREY KNELLER (1646-1723) studied under Ferdinand Bol, and perhaps Rembrandt himself in the 1660s. He was in Rome and Venice between 1672 and 1675, settling in England in 1676 for life. He was soon employed at Court and became the most successful portraitist of the generation following Lely. He enjoyed the office of Principal Painter, at first jointly with John Riley (d.1691), from shortly after the accession of William and Mary in 1688 until his death. He was knighted in 1692 and became a baronet in 1715.
His work fully expresses the spirit of the English Baroque, and includes penetrating studies of many of the leading figures of Whig Society such as the famous Kit-Kat portraits now in the National Portrait Gallery (Beningborough Hall, Yorkshire), which include the likenesses of Sir John Vanbrugh, Charles, 3rd Earl of Carlisle, and others.
SIZE: 35.5 x 30.25 inches including the frame.
PROVENANCE: Verso, a stamp for the Carrocoll Collection, with a crest of a coronet surmounted by a bird. Also an inventory number 1327 and an old storage label for The Depository, Croydon.
Roy Precious - Antiques & Fine Art has dated this piece to the 18th Century.
Roy and nadine precious: specialists in portraiture from the 16th to the 20th century. Established in 1972.
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Portrait of a Gentleman by Sir Godfrey Kneller and Studio C.1710.
