Thomas Gainsborough, R.A. (Sudbury 1727 - 1788 London)

The present work was one of six drawings discovered in the same frame including a work previously attributed to George Frost (1745-1821), all drawn on laid paper of a type Gainsborough is known to have used (op. cit., nos. 1005-1011). They are among Gainsborough’s largest drawings from the 1740s and show the artist experimenting with composition. The pencil work in the drawing is highly finished with strong contrasts of light and shade used to convey depth and recession. Stylistically it is similar in handling and scale to a drawing in the possession of the Anstruther family (see J. Hayes, 'Gainsborough Drawings A Supplement to the Catalogue Raisonné', Master Drawings, XXI, no. 4, p. 380, no. 886, pl 4b) .