Thomas Gainsborough, R.A.

The Heathcote Art Foundation;
By whom sold, New York, Sotheby's, 15 January 1987, lot 117;
The Woodcock-Koger Foundation;
By whom sold, New York, Sotheby's, 28 January 1999, lot 456.

The canvas appears to be unlined and is stable on its stretcher. The painting presents a strong image and reads well beneath a clear varnish. There is a small and very faintly raised area in the background at lower right, and there are some small pin-dot spots of retouching faintly visible to the naked eye to the left and above the sitter's head, although these are in no way distracting. Inspection under UV reveals some scattered small spots of retouching to the background and sitter's costume, and some lines of inpainting to sitter's face. Further inspection under UV is impeded by a milky varnish, below which there may be some older retouching, particularly in the background that may have slightly discolored with age. Offered in a decoratively carved giltwood frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

This painting will be included in Hugh Belsey’s forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the portraits of Thomas Gainsborough. He dates it to circa 1758 when the artist was briefly in Bath before settling there permanently.

Robert Price was the son of Uvedale Tomkins Price (1685-1764) and his wife Anne, daughter of Lord Arthur Somerset.  During his grand tour in 1738, he studied drawing in Rome with Giovanni Battista Busiri and a number of Price’s sketches can be found in public collections.¹  In 1746 he married Sarah Barrington.  Price made sketching excursions with the naturalist Benjamin Stillingfleet and drew the plates for Stillingfleet’s treatise Observations on Grasses published in 1762.  Gainsborough was a personal friend of the Price family and made drawings at Foxley, their estate in Herefordshire, in 1760.  Price made many changes to the landscape at Foxley, planting ornamental trees and creating scenic walks and rides.  His son, Sir Uvedale Price (1747-1829) was the famous writer on the “picturesque” in English landscape.

1.  Ashmolean Museum, Oxford and The National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth.