Portrait of a Woman; (reverse, now covered by relining canvas) Study of a Child's Head

Hoppner's Portrait of a Woman from the 1790s is notable for the discovery of a child's head study on the reverse — a common practice of economical reuse of expensive prepared panels or canvases. The concealed study, revealed only when the painting was relined, provides documentary evidence of studio practice: Hoppner, like many busy portrait painters, prepared studies and sketches on any available surface, including the backs of finished works or partly used panels. The woman's identity is unknown, but her dress and manner place her in the wealthy London society that provided Hoppner's primary clientele in the decade following Reynolds's death.

Hoppner's technique shows his characteristic warm palette and fluid brushwork. The sitter is rendered with luminous flesh tones and soft, atmospheric modeling. The discovery of the child's study on the verso suggests the painting's history as a working studio piece before it was lined and framed as a finished portrait.