Anthony Gilbert Storer

Anthony Gilbert Storer, diplomat and art collector who served in the British embassies at Paris and Versailles during the 1780s, appears in this 1815 portrait at the Museo del Prado in Madrid. Storer's presence in the Prado collection reflects the diplomatic channels through which British portraits entered continental European collections, possibly through a gift or bequest related to his diplomatic service. Storer was a noted book collector and a friend of Charles James Fox, whose political circle included many of Shee's most prominent Irish-connected patrons. The Prado's possession of this British Regency portrait is an unusual feature of the Spanish museum's otherwise overwhelmingly Iberian and Italian holdings.

The diplomat is presented in civilian dress with the cultured bearing of a man who moved in the highest circles of European society. Shee"s palette is refined and restrained, suitable for a sitter of taste and discernment. The rendering of features shows competent characterization within the conventions of Regency-era male portraiture.