Augustin Edouart, Silhouette Portrait of Katherine Vereker – Early 19th-century watercolour painting
Augustin Edouart, Silhouette Portrait of Katherine Vereker – Early 19th-century watercolour painting
Augustin Edouart, Silhouette Portrait of Katherine Vereker – Early 19th-century watercolour painting

Augustin Edouart Silhouette Portrait of Katherine Vereker

£168.00
£168.00
Épuisé
View the full Collection: O'Grady Vereker Collection

An original early 19th-century watercolour painting – Augustin Edouart, Silhouette Portrait of Katherine Vereker.

A delightful papercut silhouette by one of the most famous silhouette artists of the 19th century.

Augustin Edouart (1789–1861) was born in Dunkirk, but left France in 1814, establishing himself in London, where he began his career making portraits from hair. In 1825, he began work as a silhouette portraitist, taking full-length likenesses in profile by cutting out black paper with scissors. Edouart spent fifteen years touring England and in 1829 arrived in Edinburgh. He remained there for three years, during which time he produced some 5,000 likenesses. Edouart travelled in the United States in about 1839–49, visiting New York and Boston.

He later returned to France, where he worked on smaller silhouettes. They included one of the most notable writers of this period, Victor Hugo.

His works can be found in the collections of the National Portrait Gallery, London; National Galleries of Scotland; Crawford Art Gallery, Cork; New York Historical Society; Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery; and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston amongst others.

This silhouette is a female member of the Irish aristocratic Vereker family, most likely the Hon. Katherine Vereker (1819–1910), daughter of John Prendergast Vereker, 3rd Viscount Gort (1790–1865).

It forms part of a fascinating collection of works that we have for sale connected with the aristocratic O'Grady and Vereker families of 19th-century Ireland.

On paper laid down on card. Please note the small size of this artwork.

+ Read the S&W Collection Research

O'Grady Vereker Collection

This silhouette is one of a fascinating collection of works connected with the aristocratic O'Grady and Vereker families of 19th-century Ireland. The O'Grady family was headed by Standish O'Grady, 1st Viscount Guillamore (1766–1840) of Co. Limerick, an eminent barrister and Lord Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer, known for his remarkable wit and learning. His daughter the Hon. Maria O'Grady (1791–1854) married John Prendergast Vereker, 3rd Viscount Gort (1790–1865), MP for Limerick. The collection comprises drawings by numerous members of the O'Grady and Vereker families of consistently high quality.

Interesting examples include a battle scene at Castlegarde Castle, Co. Limerick, by Waller O’Grady, who bought the castle in 1820; a portrait of Irish nationalist and leader of the Young Irelanders Thomas F. Meagher; and a view at Lough Cutra Castle, Co. Galway, the seat of Col Charles Vereker, 2nd Viscount Gort, painted by Harriet Elizabeth Stamer, Duchess de Rovigo. Lough Cutra was modelled by the architect John Nash on his East Cowes Castle. Charles Vereker had been so taken with the castle when he visited the Isle of Wight, that he instructed the architect to build him a similar home on the banks of Loch Cutra. There are some Isle of Wight drawings in the collection.

These pictures, by a family at the heart of Ireland's elite in the 19th century, were produced during a period of conflicting unionist and nationalist loyalties within the aristocracy. In 1803 Standish O'Grady led the prosecution of Robert Emmet's Irish republican rebellion, helping secure convictions for the Crown. Charles Vereker, 2nd Viscount Gort, however, had opposed the act of union in 1800, and thereby forfeited his militia command and lost his seat as MP for Limerick. Further family members, the author and historian Standish James O’Grady (1846–1928) and antiquarian Standish Hayes O'Grady (1832–1915), were key figures in the revival of Celtic literature and scholarship. The aristocracy may have been aligned with land, power and the Crown, but they nevertheless played their part in carving out a distinct Irish national identity.

COA
+ Artwork Details

Dimensions: Height: 10.5cm (4.13") Width: 6.7cm (2.64")

Presented: Unframed.

Medium: Watercolour

Age: Early 19th-century

Signed: Signed below the silhouette.

Inscribed: Inscribed lower right.

Dated: --

Condition: In good condition for its age. The picture may have minor imperfections such as slight marks, toning, foxing, creasing or pinholes, commensurate with age. Please see photos for detail.There are historic adhesive marks and/or paper remnants to the verso, from previous mounting.

Stock number: KD-060