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| Title | Portrait of the Wife of the Composer Glück | |
| Collection | Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle | |
| Artist | Vestier, Antoine (French painter, 1740-1824) After Aubry, Étienne (French painter, 1745-1781) |
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| Date | 1777 (dated) | |
| Signed | yes | |
| Description | This is a copy from an original painted in 1773 by Etienne Aubry. It has a pendant, a portrait of the composer Glück, also by Aubry, and dated 1772. Vestier copied the work at the beginning of his career, possibly as an exercise, or as a way to earn some money. The lady is represented in a very realistic manner, the painter has not tried to hide her age. | |
| Current Accession Number | B.M.892 | |
| Former Accession Number | No. 538; No. 275 | |
| Inscription | front ul 'A. vestier 1777' | |
| Subject | portrait (Glück, Mme) | |
| Measurements | 62 x 52 cm (estimate) | |
| Material | oil on canvas | |
| Acquisition Details | Bequeathed by the founders John and Joséphine Bowes 1885. | |
| Provenance | Bought from A. Basset by Bowes, 2 September 1873 with three pictures by Robert and a watercolour of a lady, total 13,600 francs. | |
| Notes | This was no. 538 in sheaf catalogue. This was also listed as no. 275 in John Bowes' catalogue as 'Portrait of a middle aged Lady in a red Dress, trimmed with Fur, and a Lace Cap, Antoine Vestier, about 1786'. The original portrait by Etienne Aubry is kept in a private collection in Paris. It appeared in Le Dix-Huitième Siècle Français, published by Hachette, 1956, p. 139. It is completely identical to the Vestier from the Bowes Museum. As Vestier did not start exhibiting before 1782 (see Benezit, vol. 14 for the artist's biography), this is one of his early works, either a study for himself or a copy of the Aubry painting which may have been ordered by the Glück family. | |
| Rights Owner | The Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, Co. Durham | |
| Author | Dr Maylis Hopewell-Curie | |