The Ladies Waldegrave
About this artwork
Reynolds was particularly skilled at choosing poses and actions which suggested a sitter's character and which also created a strong composition. Here, three sisters, the daughters of the 2nd Earl Waldegrave, are shown collaboratively working on a piece of needlework. The joint activity links the girls together. On the left, the eldest, Lady Charlotte, holds a skein of silk, which the middle sister, Lady Elizabeth, winds onto a card. On the right, the youngest, Lady Anna, works a tambour frame, using a hook to make lace on a taut net.
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title:The Ladies Waldegrave
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accession number:NG 2171
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materials:Oil on canvas
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date created:1780
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measurements:143.00 x 168.30 cm (framed: 171.00 x 196.50 x 10.00 cm)
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credit line:Purchased with the aid of The Cowan Smith Bequest and the Art Fund 1952
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photographer:Antonia Reeve
Sir Joshua Reynolds
Sir Joshua Reynolds
Reynolds was born in Plympton, Devon, the son of a headmaster. He was apprenticed to the London portrait painter, Thomas Hudson, in 1740. In 1749 he went to Italy, spending two years in Rome. On his return, in 1753, he set up a studio in London. Reynolds developed…