A Gallery of Ozias Humphry

Ozias Humphry (Honiton, Devon, England, 8th September 1742 – London, England, 9th March 1810)

Ozias Humphry, Portrait Painter in Crayons to the King, died on this day. To read about his remarkable life, click here, or to discover more about the Rice portrait, which some believe shows a young Jane Austen, click here.

Its a pleasure to present some of his remarkable paintings to you; I hope you enjoy them!

Elizabeth (Berkeley), Margravine of Anspach

Lavinia, Countess Spencer, née Bingham

Portrait of a Gentleman

Lady Affleck

The Rice Portrait

On this day in 1775, Jane Austen was born. She has, of course, gone on to become a literary legend, her works beloved the world over and her name feted so it is of no surprise that the owners of the portrait below are keen to prove that the young girl captured on canvas is none other than Austen as a child.

This is the Rice portrait; it has been owned by members of the Rice family for generations and they have long claimed that it shows the 13 year old Jane Austen and is a work commissioned by Jane's uncle, Francis Austen, in 1788. Through letters and family papers, the family believe that the painting is the work of Ozias Humphry, Painter in Crayons to the King.

The portrait has long been the subject of dispute as its supporters and detractors argue back and forth as to whether it truly is of Jane Austen. In 1948, Dr RW Chapman drew attention to the costume of the young lady in the portrait and argued that such clothes were not popular until the early nineteenth century, so the girl could not possibly by Austen, nor could the artist be Humphry, who had been forced by blindness to give up painting by this point.

Although others have disputed this and pointed to other similar costumes in apparently earlier paintings, this remains one of the major sticking points in the dating of the work.

In 2012, a 1910 photograph of the painting held in the Heinz Archive and Library was examined in forensic detail and appeared to show both the signature of Humphry and the name Jane Austen. The Rice family claim that restoration destroyed these inscriptions but the Naitonal Portrait Gallery have disputed these findings and state that the inscriptions were not visible in 1985, when they had the painting photographed.

Today the family continue to petition the National Portrait Gallery to accept the authenticity of the painting and the Gallery  in its turn restates its position that this is not a Humphry, nor does it show Jane Austen.

What do you think?

Ozias Humphry, Portrait Painter in Crayons to the King

Ozias Humphry (Honiton, Devon, England, 8th September 1742 – London, England, 9th March 1810)

Ozias Humphry by Valentine Green after George Romney, 1772

Today we meet an artistic gentleman who was born to a lacemaker and a wigmaker and rose to the heights of his field. Friendly with the greatest names in England, Ozias Humphry became one of the most respected painters in England yet an accident in the 1770s would prove a defining moment in his professional life.

When Humphry was 15 he left Devon for London and a position studying art at Shipley's school. From there he trailed to Bath and became apprentice to miniaturist Samuel Collins whilst staying with our old friend, Thomas Linley, a fine billet that introduced him to some of the more fashionable names of England.  Humphry's work was seen and admired by Gainsborough and my own favourite, Sir Joshua Reynolds and when Collins fled England in a hurry to escape his debts, Humphry struck out alone as a miniaturist and built a considerable name for himself in the field, with the demands of work drawing him back to the capital.

Mrs Archibald Hutcheson by Ozias Humphry

Apparently a gentleman of a somewhat changeable and troubled demeanour, Humphry was not without lady friends yet he never married despite more than one particularly strong attachment. Whilst his personal life may not have been eventful of some our salon guests, Humphry's professional achievements were another thing altogether and it seemed as though nothing could stop his ascendancy. Sadly though, fate was to deal a cruel blow to the artist and around the time of Humphry's thirtieth birthday he fell from his horse. The accident resulted in damage to his eyesight that would grown worse as the years drew on and the eventual outcome was a move away from miniatures and into larger studies in pastels and oils.

Gavin Hamilton by Ozias Humphry, 1777

In 1773 Humphry and George Romney travelled to Italy where they remained for four years, studying art and anatomy and honing their craft. Upon his return to England, Humphry found himself in even more demand and his skills were officially recognised by his election to the Royal Academy in 1779. By now a man of considerable means, Humphry indulged his wanderlust again in 1785, spending two years in India and when he returned to England this time, it was as a pastellist.

With his popularity and patrons as notable as ever, Humphry was appointed Portrait Painter in Crayons to the King in 1793. Tragically, the celebrated artist was finally rendered blind in 1797 and retired to his London home, where he lived out the remainder of his days as a figure to be admired and respected by his contemporaries and those who aspired to the heights he had reached.

The Rice Portrait, believed to be a painting of Jane Austen as a child, painted by Ozias Humphry , 1788-90. Attribution of the painting is a matter of ongoing debate and is well-documented!

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