Antonio Canova (1757–1822), Sculptor

Antonio Canova, the greatest Neoclassical sculptor, sat for Hayter in 1817 during the English painter’s years in Italy. Canova was then at the height of his fame, having recently negotiated the return of looted artworks from Paris after Napoleon’s fall. This portrait in the Government Art Collection captures the sculptor five years before his death, preserving the likeness of a man who had reshaped European taste in sculpture. George Hayter was the preeminent British history and portrait painter of the early Victorian era, appointed Principal Painter in Ordinary to Queen Victoria in 1841.

Hayter brings particular sensitivity to this portrait of a fellow artist, rendering Canova’s intelligent, refined features with a warmth and directness that suggests genuine personal engagement.