'A Jersey pair' thumbnail 1
'A Jersey pair' thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

'A Jersey pair'

Photograph
September 1879 (made)
Artist/Maker

Rupert Potter (1832-1914), father of the children's writer and illustrator, Beatrix Potter (1866-1943), was a keen amateur photographer and a close friend of the painter and illustrator, Sir John Everett Millais (1829-1896). Rupert would often assist Millais by photographing backgrounds for paintings and sitters for portraits. The Millais family lived mostly in London but spent long summer holidays at Annet Lodge near Bowerswell, Perthshire. Here, Millais executed many of his best-known paintings and enjoyed the company of likeminded friends, including the Potters who also retreated to Perthshire for extended summer holidays, first renting Dalguise, then later Eastwood, a large house on the bank of the Tay in Dunkeld.

The notorious and highly successful actress, Lillie Langtry (1853-1929), was also a friend of Millais; his famous portrait of her, A Jersey Lily (1878), was exhibited at the Royal Academy. In September 1879, amid affairs with Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, Prince Louis of Battenberg and the Earl of Shrewsbury, Langtry visited Millais and Potter in Perthshire. Potter choreographed formal portraits of Langtry and more relaxed poses conversing with Millais in the garden at Eastwood.

The inscription on the mount of this photograph, ‘A Jersey pair’, must refer to Millais’s portrait of Langtry.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 3 parts.

  • Photograph
  • Label
  • Mount
Title'A Jersey pair' (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Albumen print on paper
Brief description
Photograph of John Everett Millais and Lillie Langtry in the garden at Eastwood, Dunkeld, by Rupert Potter, September 1879; Linder Bequest cat. no. LB.2118
Physical description
A double portrait, with a man and a woman shown full-length sat in a garden, the exterior of a house behind them.
Dimensions
  • Sheet height: 180mm
  • Sheet width: 217mm
Style
Production typesmall batch
Marks and inscriptions
'A Jersey pair. / Lillie Langtry / John Everett Millais / Eastwood / Sep 1879' (Inscribed in ink on mount.)
Credit line
Linder Bequest [plus object number; written on labels on the same line as the object number]
Object history
Photograph taken by Rupert Potter in the garden of Eastwood House, Dunkeld, in September 1879. Acquired by the V&A from Leslie Linder (1904-1973) in 1973 as part of the Linder Bequest, a collection of ca. 2150 watercolours, drawings, literary manuscripts, correspondence, books, photographs, and other memorabilia associated with Beatrix Potter and her family.
Subjects depicted
Places depicted
Summary
Rupert Potter (1832-1914), father of the children's writer and illustrator, Beatrix Potter (1866-1943), was a keen amateur photographer and a close friend of the painter and illustrator, Sir John Everett Millais (1829-1896). Rupert would often assist Millais by photographing backgrounds for paintings and sitters for portraits. The Millais family lived mostly in London but spent long summer holidays at Annet Lodge near Bowerswell, Perthshire. Here, Millais executed many of his best-known paintings and enjoyed the company of likeminded friends, including the Potters who also retreated to Perthshire for extended summer holidays, first renting Dalguise, then later Eastwood, a large house on the bank of the Tay in Dunkeld.

The notorious and highly successful actress, Lillie Langtry (1853-1929), was also a friend of Millais; his famous portrait of her, A Jersey Lily (1878), was exhibited at the Royal Academy. In September 1879, amid affairs with Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, Prince Louis of Battenberg and the Earl of Shrewsbury, Langtry visited Millais and Potter in Perthshire. Potter choreographed formal portraits of Langtry and more relaxed poses conversing with Millais in the garden at Eastwood.

The inscription on the mount of this photograph, ‘A Jersey pair’, must refer to Millais’s portrait of Langtry.
Bibliographic reference
Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection : the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material : watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985. p.215; no.2118 Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection: the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material: watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985. p.215; no.2118
Other number
LB.2118 - Linder Bequest catalogue no.
Collection
Library number
BP.1530

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Record createdSeptember 8, 2016
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