George Fothergill of York (1689–1770)

George Fothergill of York (1689–1770) was a physician and man of learning, and this 1746 portrait at the Ferens Art Gallery is among the earliest authenticated works by Stubbs, painted when he was only twenty-two years old and still building his practice as a portraitist in York. Fothergill was a well-connected figure in York's medical and intellectual community — a city with a vibrant cultural life centred on the York Medical Society and the assembly rooms — and a commission from such a sitter signalled Stubbs's acceptance into respectable professional circles. The portrait demonstrates the young Stubbs's competence within the half-length male portrait convention: sober, direct, and without unnecessary flourish. It also documents his ability to satisfy the demands of educated, discerning clients even before his decisive turn toward animal painting. The Ferens Gallery holds this as part of a small but important group of early Stubbs portraits from the York period.

Oil on canvas. The portrait follows the standard Georgian formula for a professional man's likeness: half-length, three-quarter turn, sober dark clothing against a neutral ground. Stubbs's handling of the face shows already-developed skills in flesh-tone modelling, with confident warm-to-cool transitions across the forehead and cheeks.