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Mrs Littleton (1789–1846)
Thomas Lawrence·1822
Historical Context
Lawrence painted Mrs. Littleton around 1822, depicting Hyacinthe Mary Wellesley, who married Edward Littleton (later 1st Baron Hatherton). She was the illegitimate daughter of the Marquess Wellesley, making her the Duke of Wellington's niece. The portrait captures her with the elegant warmth characteristic of Lawrence's female portraits. Now in the Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle, the painting demonstrates Lawrence's continued command of female portraiture in his later career.
Technical Analysis
Lawrence bestows his characteristic warmth and elegance on the young society woman, with luminous skin tones and a graceful arrangement of hair and costume. The brushwork is fluid and assured, the overall impression one of youthful refinement captured at the height of fashionable beauty.
Look Closer
- ◆Notice the luminous skin tones and graceful hair and costume: Lawrence applies his signature female portrait technique to a Wellington-family connection.
- ◆Look at the fluid, assured brushwork: this is Lawrence's late female manner at its most practiced.
- ◆Observe the Laing Art Gallery Newcastle location: the Wellesley family connection extends Lawrence's reach to the northeast.
- ◆Find the youthful refinement captured at the height of fashionable beauty: the warm highlights and elegant arrangement are exactly calibrated to the sitter's youth.
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