Isabella Anne Hutchinson, Mrs Jens Wolff (?1771-1829)

Isabella Anne Hutchinson married Jens Wolff, a Danish-born merchant and collector who became one of Lawrence's closest friends. Painted around 1803, this portrait belongs to a period when Lawrence was producing his most psychologically penetrating likenesses of women. His technique at this stage was confident and direct, building up faces with transparent glazes to achieve the luminous flesh tones that made him the most sought-after portrait painter in Regency Britain.

Lawrence builds the sitter's face through layers of translucent glazes over a warm ground, creating an effect of inner radiance. The handling of hair and dress is characteristic — loose and suggestive rather than tightly finished, giving the portrait a sense of living presence.