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William Beckford by John Hoppner

William Beckford

John Hoppner·c. 1784

Historical Context

William Beckford from around 1784 by John Hoppner depicts the wealthy eccentric, writer, and collector who built the extraordinary Fonthill Abbey. Beckford's immense fortune from Jamaican sugar plantations funded both his architectural follies and one of the most remarkable art collections in Georgian England. Characteristic of the artist's mature approach, the work displays fluent, confident brushwork in the tradition of Reynolds, with a warm atmospheric palette and a gift for flattering likenesses that retained individual character.

Technical Analysis

The portrait captures the cultivated aesthete with Hoppner's atmospheric technique, rendering the complex personality of one of the era's most fascinating cultural figures.

See It In Person

Salford Museum and Art Gallery

Salford, United Kingdom

Visit museum website →

Quick Facts

Medium
Oil paint
Dimensions
124 × 99 cm
Era
Neoclassicism
Style
British Neoclassicism
Genre
Portrait
Location
Salford Museum and Art Gallery, Salford
View on museum website →

More by John Hoppner

William Gifford by John Hoppner

William Gifford

John Hoppner·c. 1800

Mrs. Thomas Pechell (Charlotte Clavering, died 1841) by John Hoppner

Mrs. Thomas Pechell (Charlotte Clavering, died 1841)

John Hoppner·1799

Major Thomas Pechell (1753–1826) by John Hoppner

Major Thomas Pechell (1753–1826)

John Hoppner·1799

Portrait of a Woman; (reverse, now covered by relining canvas) Study of a Child's Head by John Hoppner

Portrait of a Woman; (reverse, now covered by relining canvas) Study of a Child's Head

John Hoppner·1790s

More from the Neoclassicism Period

Portrait of the Artist's Father, Ismael Mengs by Anton Raphael Mengs

Portrait of the Artist's Father, Ismael Mengs

Anton Raphael Mengs·1747–48

View on the River Roseau, Dominica by Agostino Brunias

View on the River Roseau, Dominica

Agostino Brunias·1770–80

Manuel Godoy by Agustin Esteve y Marqués

Manuel Godoy

Agustin Esteve y Marqués·1800–8

Portrait of a Musician by Alessandro Longhi

Portrait of a Musician

Alessandro Longhi·c. 1770