William Henry Rowland Irby (1784–1842)

William Henry Rowland Irby from 1801 by John Hoppner depicts a young man who would later inherit the barony of Boston. The youthful portrait captures the sitter at the threshold of adult life, a common occasion for Georgian portrait commissions. Hoppner's oil handling favored warm flesh tones over silvery grey half-shadows, producing an immediate vivacity that reflected his admiration for Reynolds and Gainsborough. Portrait Painter to the Prince of Wales from 1793, prolific exhibitor at the Royal Academy.

The portrait of the young heir is rendered with Hoppner's atmospheric technique, the warm palette and fluid brushwork capturing the freshness of youth.