Elizabeth Farren (born about 1759, died 1829), Later Countess of Derby

A portrait of Elizabeth Farren, the actress who would later become Countess of Derby, painted by Thomas Lawrence around 1790 and shown that same year at the Royal Academy exhibition at Somerset House, alongside his portrait of Queen Charlotte. Farren had made her debut at the Haymarket Theatre in 1777, and seven years after the picture was painted she married the 12th Earl of Derby, giving up her career at that point. She is shown as a fashionable society lady, in a gown of rich fabrics and fur, and Lawrence handles the sheen of these materials with great skill. The setting is unexpected: despite the elegance of her dress, she stands in a green forest clearing, with grass and trees around her, and the low viewpoint leaves much of the canvas filled with sky. Her youthful, spontaneous expression drew praise from a contemporary critic, who described her as carefree, mischievous and friendly. Lawrence, later regarded as Reynolds's successor as a portraitist, shows here his talent for combining naturalness with polish.

Painter

Thomas Lawrence

Date

1790

Medium

oil paint, canvas

Dimensions

239 × 146 cm

Museum

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City

Movement

academic art

Genre

portrait

Depicts

muff, portrait, ermine, glove, fur clothing, cloak, Elizabeth Farren

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