Framed Pastel: James Nelthorpe by Jean-Etienne Liotard (1702-1789). Pastel on paper, 1738, in a William Kent frame.

Key information

Museum number

A358

Object

Framed Pastel: James Nelthorpe by Jean-Etienne Liotard (1702-1789). Pastel on paper, 1738, in a William Kent frame.

Gallery label

James Nelthorpe (c. 1719–1767)
Jean-Etienne Liotard (1702–1789)
Pastel on paper, 1738

James Nelthorpe, a Leeds landowner, was in Rome on his Grand Tour when he met the extraordinary Swiss artist Liotard. He was one of the British gentlemen who travelled with Liotard to Constantinople, where the artist produced fascinating records of Ottoman life.

This striking image of the young Yorkshireman with his red fur-lined kaftan and turban is one of the first pastel portraits made by the artist whilst in Constantinople. Although the composition appears simple at first, with its broad blocks of colour, Liotard has taken pains to record every strand of fur in sooty black and sharp white.


Bequest of J Murray Elger, 1955

A358

On display?

No

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