Lecture 1 - Zoffany: Obscurity to Fame

Within a very few years of arrival in England, Zoffany was an intimate of the famous actor David Garrick, many of whose celebrated roles he captured in lively depictions of the great man on stage. Thus launched, he came to the attention of the Earl of Bute who recommended him to George III and Queen Charlotte, for whom he painted intimate portraits of the royal children set in the royal family’s new home at Buckingham House. Thus launched, he built up an enviable reputation for ‘conversation’ pieces depicting his clients in relaxed mode, rather than the formal manner of his English contemporaries, Reynolds and Gainsborough.