Portret van Ary Scheffer op (ongeveer) 50-jarige leeftijd

Phillips's portrait of Ary Scheffer, the Dutch-born painter who became one of the leading Romantic artists in France, documents an unusual cross-cultural encounter between the leading British portrait painter and one of France's most celebrated artists. Scheffer, known for his Romantic literary subjects and his intimate connection to the circle around Thiers and Louis-Philippe, was a figure of major cultural significance in France, and his portrait by Phillips would have been made during one of the French painter's London visits or a Phillips visit to Paris. The portrait demonstrates Phillips's connections to the international artistic world beyond Britain and his ability to serve as the portraitist of distinguished foreign visitors to the London art scene.

Phillips captures the fellow painter with professional courtesy, rendering Scheffer's features with the careful observation one artist brings to another. The portrait follows standard conventions while perhaps showing a particular sensitivity in the treatment of a fellow artist's likeness. The Dordrecht setting connects the cosmopolitan painter to his Dutch origins.