A Good c.1830s Provincial English School Pastel Portrait of a Mother & Child

SOLD
Origin: English
Period: William IV
Provenance: Unknown
Date: c.1830-40
Canvas Height: 12.75 inches
Canvas Width: 10.5 inches
In Frame: 16.25 x 14.25 inches

The gilt framed and glazed pastel three-quarter length portrait of a young mother and child, the cherubic child clutching at her mothers gold necklace in a lace bonnet the mother holding her child sitting in a lace shawl with floral brooch, her hair in ringlets, both subjects with the same pale complexion and grey blue eyes, the whole depicted on a deep blue pastel ground survives from the William IV period.

The picture is in good overall condition and does not suffer from any major flaws. There is some pastel lacking to the corners and the picture is signed but sadly it is too smudged to be discernable, we can only make out ‘G. C. ? The frame and glass are both original to the picture and is of a good quality. It has some expected flaking and chipping but remains in a nice original untouched state with the pine backing boards all present and correct.

The well-executed treatment of the mother and child in pastels make the picture more feminine, discrete, otherworldly and nuanced, capturing what was obviously a strong bond between mother and child; the sitter wanted this bond to be captured and preserved. The colours selected here are very well balanced and, indeed, sit well with today’s current interior trends.

Delicate, ephemeral beauty.
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