Cleveland Museum of Art

Portrait of Mary Wise

Thomas GainsboroughLinkedCulture matchlcp-5fd7040ad1f9

Date: c. 1774
Medium: oil on canvas
Culture: England, 18th century
Department: European Painting and Sculpture
Institution: Cleveland Museum of Art
Object ID: 124080

From the Cleveland Museum of Art record

Mary’s modest and contemplative demeanor is a counterpoint to a rather elaborate ensemble consisting of a gown embroidered with gold flower sprigs, trimmed with lace and pearls, and tied with a gold sash, as well as a gold-striped veil and a bracelet with eight gold bands. Gainsborough’s compact oval format and the sitter’s informal pose lend this portrait an air of intimacy. The portrait shows Mary in her twenties, with her hair powdered fashionably grey.

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Provenance & credit

As published by the source institution. Coverage varies — not every institution's open-data feed includes ownership history.

Credit line: The Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Collection
Provenance: around 1776-?: Mrs. Henry Christopher Wise (née Mary Wathen) [born 1751] by descent to her great-granddaughter, Catherine Waller | ?-1892: Catherine [1804-1861] and Sir Thomas Wathen Waller, 2nd Bt [1805-1892], by descent to their grandson, Sir Francis Grant Waller | 1892-1910: Sir Francis Grant Waller, 4th Bt, sold to Agnew | 1910: (Agnew, London, sold to Duveen) | 1910: (Duveen, through Romer Williams) | ?: (F. Kleinberger Galleries, New York, NY) | 1913: (Duveen) | ?-1944: Elizabeth Severance Prentiss Allen [1865-1944], Cleveland, OH, bequeathed by her to the Cleveland Museum of Art | 1944-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Part of a LinkedCulture topic

English Portrait Miniatures
A collection of portrait miniatures from 17th-18th century England, predominantly featuring watercolor on ivory or graphite and wash techniques, representing the tradition of intimate personal portraiture in miniature fo
221 objects from 4 institutions