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View: In frame
John Thornhill (1773–1841) as a Boy
George Romney (English, 1734–1802)
about 1784–85
Medium/Technique
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
186.7 x 121 cm (73 1/2 x 47 5/8 in.)
Credit Line
Given in memory of Governor Alvan T. Fuller by the Fuller Foundation
Accession Number61.962
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsEurope
ClassificationsPaintings
Painted after Romney’s travels brought him to Paris, Rome, Venice, and Parma, this portrait represents the artist’s later style, which would anticipate the informality that came to dominate British portraiture. The boy’s languid pose sets the tone, enhanced by Romney’s restrained color scheme and casual handling of the background. Subtle diagonals—cocked arm, leg crossed at the knee—enliven the otherwise vertical composition.
Provenance1784-85, probably commissioned by Cudbert Thornhill (b. 1723 - d. 1809), Hull, England and Calcutta, India [see note 1]; 1841, by descent through the family to General Charles Powlett Lane (b. 1826 - d. 1910), Badgemore, Henley on Thames [see note 2]; 1910, by inheritance to his widow, Mrs. C. P. Lane (Bertha D'Albiac du Boulay) (b. 1849 - d. 1939), Donhead Hall, Shaftesbury; 1919, sold by Mrs. C. P. Lane to Agnew's, London; June 1925, sold by Agnew's to Governor Alvan Tufts Fuller (b. 1878 - d. 1958), Boston; 1958, with the Alvan T. Fuller Foundation, Boston; 1961, gift of the Alvan T. Fuller Foundation to the MFA. (Accession date: September 20, 1961)
NOTES:
[1] Father of the sitter, John Thornhill (b. 1773 - d. 1841), Cosspore, India and Blackheath, England. John Thornhill was director of the East India Company from 1815 - 1841. He became the adopted heir of Francine Bensley and later used Bensley name for several of his children. See also the complete Thornhill family tree, provided by Valerie Thornhill in MFA curatorial file.
[2] Charles Powlett Lane was a Major General in the British Indian Army. He was the son of John Thornhill's daughter, Emily Maria Thornhill (d. 1877), who married Charles Lane (b. 1793 - d. 1878), Badgemore, Oxfordshire, England.
NOTES:
[1] Father of the sitter, John Thornhill (b. 1773 - d. 1841), Cosspore, India and Blackheath, England. John Thornhill was director of the East India Company from 1815 - 1841. He became the adopted heir of Francine Bensley and later used Bensley name for several of his children. See also the complete Thornhill family tree, provided by Valerie Thornhill in MFA curatorial file.
[2] Charles Powlett Lane was a Major General in the British Indian Army. He was the son of John Thornhill's daughter, Emily Maria Thornhill (d. 1877), who married Charles Lane (b. 1793 - d. 1878), Badgemore, Oxfordshire, England.