Mother and Child

Mother and Child from 1774 by George Stubbs is a rare domestic genre painting that demonstrates his range beyond animal subjects, depicting a human mother and infant in an intimate interior scene. Such subjects were exceptional in his output, concentrated almost entirely on animals and outdoor sporting scenes, and suggest that Stubbs occasionally sought to demonstrate his figure painting capabilities in subjects entirely removed from his animal expertise. The tender domestic subject connects to the sentimental genre painting that was becoming increasingly popular in English art during the 1770s, influenced by Dutch precedents and responding to Enlightenment ideas about childhood and the family. The work is held at Tate and occupies an unusual position in his career—a demonstration of range, warmth, and the ability to find meaning in the intimate domestic world.

The domestic scene demonstrates Stubbs's figure painting ability, the maternal subject rendered with warmth and careful observation.