Richard Westall
Emma Hamilton (1765–1815) as Ariadne
Auction is live
Waiting for auctioneer to open lot
Estimate
25,000 - 35,000 GBP
Bid
18,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Richard Westall, R.A.
Reepham 1765–1836 London
Emma Hamilton (1765–1815) as Ariadne
oil on canvas
unframed: 79.4 x 56 cm.; 31¼ x 22 in.
framed: 106.5 x 87.7 cm.; 41⅞ x 34½ in.
Anonymous sale, London, Sotheby's, 10–17 July 1985, lot 61;
Anonymous sale, London, Phillips, 10 March 1989, lot 67;
Anonymous sale, London, Phillips, 2 May 1989, lot 67;
Anonymous sale, London, Sotheby's, 16 May 1990, lot 68;
Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 12 April 1991, lot 133;
With Wick Antiques, Lymington, by 2019.
Probably London, Royal Academy, 1805, no. 190 (titled Ariadne).
ENGRAVED
W.T. Annis (active 1798–1812), circa 1805
This alluring and newly rediscovered painting by Richard Westall most likely portrays Emma Hamilton in the guise of the Cretan princess Ariadne. A celebrated model and artistic muse, Emma Hamilton was renowned for her collaborations with leading international artists, as well as for her marriage to the diplomat Sir William Hamilton and her intimate relationship with Admiral Lord Nelson (lot 216). As a cultural icon and European celebrity of the early nineteenth century, her beauty, charisma, and theatrical flair captivated an entire generation.
She is depicted here adopting one of her so-called ‘attitudes’, a series of poses in which she played out scenes from classical works of art.1 Regularly taking on the guise of powerful women from ancient literature, her intense performances as figures such as Medea and Circe became popular with large audiences of grand tourists in Naples.
The painting belongs to a group of works by Westall that adopt Emma Hamilton’s likeness to depict subjects from mythology and classical history. These include Lady Hamilton as Saint Cecilia in the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich;2 Emma Hamilton as a Bacchante in a private collection;3 and a possible depiction of her as Sappho in the Lady Lever Art Gallery, Bebington.4
Little is known about Westall’s connection to Emma Hamilton, and it remains uncertain whether she ever sat for him. It is therefore plausible that paintings such as this were not conceived as portraits but rather as imaginative recreations inspired by her celebrated image and her ‘attitudes’.
1 Her attitudes are depicted in drawings by the Italian artist Pietro Antonio Novelli; https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.70321.html
2 https://www.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/rmgc-object-13830
3 https://www.wga.hu/html_m/w/westall/ladyhami.html
4 This painting is traditionally known as The Artist's Wife as Sappho however Westall never married. It has therefore been suggested that the model could be Emma Hamilton; https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/artifact/artists-wife-sappho
