A fine example of the caricature work from the renowed artist and printmaker, Robert Dighton, drawn, etched and published at the peak of his success from his Charing Cross studio and shop. The etching shows a round faced Oxford scholar in the traditional garb of the university. The artist has inscribed the title and publishing details at the lower edge and the etching has been finished with delicate hand colouring. There is a later inscription in ink at the lower right with information indicating that the sitter for the etching might have been George Nugent-Grenville, 2nd Baron Nugent.
The etching has been presented in a brushed gilt frame with a card mount. There is a framer's label at the reverse.
On wove.The condition is typical for a picture of this age including some discolouration. Light creasing in the upper third. The original plate lines are in tact.
31 x 21cm (12.2" x 8.3")Framed Size: 49 x 39.7cm (19.3" x 15.6")
Robert Dighton was born c.1752 in London and died there in 1814. An English portrait painter, printmaker and caricaturist, he was the founder of a dynasty of artists who followed in his footsteps.
Robert Dighton was the son of the London printseller John Dighton. In the 1770s he began acting and singing in plays at the Haymarket Theatre, Covent Garden and Sadler’s Wells while at the same time training and exhibiting at the Royal Academy - he entered the Royal Academy Schools in 1722.
As an artist, he was first offered consistent employment by the publisher Carington Bowles.
Much of Dighton's early work was issued anonymously, but by the early 1790s it became increasingly well known and he began etching and publishing under his own name. In awkward poses and with ruddy faces, Dighton's satirical caricatures included lawyers, military officers, actors and actresses who were seen about town, as well as down-at-heel types. In 1795 he brought out a Book of Heads and thenceforth devoted himself chiefly to caricature. His work is noted as being less savage than that of his contemporaries, James Gilray and George Cruikshank.
By the start of the century, his success allowed him to open a shop in Charing Cross, where he sold his own prints and those of others.
While living in Oxford he did an amusing series of portraits of academic types and country gentlemen, as well as in Bath and Cambridge. Returning to London in 1810, he reopened his studio, where he worked with his sons until his death in 1814
| SKU | rg732 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Robert Dighton (1752-1814) |
| Date | 1808 |
| Dimensions | 31 x 21cm |
| Medium | Etching |
| Style | Illustration Art |
| Subject | Portrait |
| Item Returns | This item can be returned |
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