Description
The sitter married Sir John Read in 1774, who also sat for a portrait by the artist in 1788. Born in Lancashire, Romney first apprenticed in his father’s cabinetmaker’s shop. He worked in the north of England until 1762, when he settled in London. There he became a successful portraitist, alongside Joshua Reynolds and Thomas Gainsborough. As with many successful portraitists, his heart lay elsewhere and he dreamed of making history paintings, but his plans for grandiose compositions rarely advanced beyond drawings.
Provenance
Sir John Chandos Reade (the sitter's son); Shipton Court (sale: Christie's London, 13 July 1895, no. 14); (A. Tooth, London, 1895); Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Wade; Sir John Chandos Reade, Seventh Bart. (1785-1868), Shipton Court, Axon, England (sold, Christie’s, London, July 13, 1895, no. 14, to Tooth and Sons, London);; Tooth and Sons (London, England), sold to Mr. and Mrs. J.H. Wade, 1895; 1895-1916 Mr. and Mrs. J.H. Wade (Gates Mills, Ohio), by gift to the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1916.; The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1916-)
Accession Number
1916.1041
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
Framed: 102 x 89 x 10.5 cm (40 3/16 x 35 1/16 x 4 1/8 in.); Unframed: 69.8 x 59 cm (27 1/2 x 23 1/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Wade
