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MACKINNON FINE FURNITURE
GEORGE ROMNEY (1734-1802) Portrait of Francis Lind (1752/3-1840) An outstanding portrait by George Romney of Francis Lind, three-quarter-length, seated at a window before a music stand in a red chair, in a powdered wig, a green coat and breeches and a pink waistcoat with gold embroidery, holding a one-keyed Simpson ivory flute in his right hand. Oil on canvas, in a contemporary 18th century Maratta frame. Canvas Dimensions: Height: 49¾ in (126 cm); Width: 40 in (101.5 cm) Framed Dimensions: Height: 57½ in (146 cm) Width: 47¼ in (120 cm) Provenance Painted for the sitter’s mother, Elizabeth Lind, née Farrer, along with the portrait of Edward Lind, both paintings passing by inheritance to the sitter’s niece Elizabeth Lind, and by descent to her daughter Juliana Louisa Denys, and by descent to her son Leopold Agar Denys Montague, and by descent
Francis Lind The sitter of this portrait, Francis Lind, was the son of Captain Francis Lind, M.D., of the 14th Regiment of Foot and his wife Elizabeth, who was the daughter of Major Montague Farrer. The Lind family derived its wealth from the drapery business. The family seat was Gorgie near Edinburgh. Born on February 13, 1753, Francis Lind served in the Indian Civil Service. The portrait is dated to 1775-76 and was commissioned by Lind’s mother along with one of his younger brother, Edward George Lind. Alex Kidson suggests that the views behind both sitters likely depict scenes of the Lake District. On the fly-leaf to Romney’s diary in 1776 there is a memorandum that reads, ‘Mrs Lind, Carlisle, to be sent on Friday morning to the Castle Inn.’ This note presumably denotes the address to which the portraits of the two Lind brothers were to be sent.
Literature H. Ward & W. Roberts, Romney: A Biographical and Critical Essay with a Catalogue Raisonné of his Works, London, 1904, II, p. 95. M. Pastoureau, Green: The History of a Color, Princeton, 2013, ill. p. 169. A. Kidson, George Romney, A Complete Catalogue of His Paintings, II, New Haven and London, 2015, pp. 367-68, no. 803. George Romney George Romney is one of the most celebrated British portrait painters of his time along with his contemporaries, Sir Joshua Reynolds and Thomas Gainsborough. Romney was born in 1734 in Dalton-in-Furness and began his career learning the art of cabinet-making as his father, John Romney, was a cabinet-maker himself. Although he left this craft behind, he always maintained his skill at building things from wood, including violins. Romney became an apprentice in 1755 for the portrait painter Christopher Steele. By 1757, he had opened his own studio in Kendal in Lancaster. He achieved local acclaim for his portraiture and set off to London in 1762 to attract additional commissions. From his studio at 32 Cavendish Square, Romney produced numerous portraits that were very well received among the London society set. A rivalry between Joshua Reynolds, who founded the Royal Academy of Arts in 1768, and Romney persisted throughout both of their careers.
George Romney (1734-1802), Portrait of Edward George Lind. ©Sotheby’s
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