Boy and Rabbit

Boy and Rabbit from 1814 at the Royal Academy of Arts is one of Raeburn’s most celebrated paintings, depicting a child holding a pet rabbit with tender affection. The work demonstrates Raeburn’s ability to transcend conventional portrait formats to create images of genuine emotional warmth and spontaneity. Characteristic of the artist's mature approach, the work displays bold, direct brushwork building form through vigorous strokes of light and shadow rather than careful blending, with minimal underdrawing.

The child and rabbit are rendered with Raeburn’s characteristic directness enhanced by unusual tenderness. The bold brushwork softens in the treatment of the child’s features while the rabbit’s soft fur is captured with varied textural handling.