- Image reference 2006AP4414
- Enlarge image
Unknown woman, formerly called Frances Howard, Countess of Somerset
- Object:
Miniature
- Place of origin:
England (probably, painted)
- Date:
1596-1600 (painted)
- Artist/Maker:
Oliver, Isaac (artist)
- Materials and Techniques:
Watercolour on vellum stuck to plain card
- Credit Line:
Purchased with the assistance of The Art Fund and the Pilgrim Trust
- Museum number:
P.12-1971
- Gallery location:
In store
This miniature, one of Oliver's masterpieces, could not be more different from the brightly coloured, brightly lit, iconic formality of his master, Nicholas Hilliard. An example of the influence that Oliver's trip in 1596 to Italy had on him, it is a virtuoso performance of chiaroscuro, or 'light and shade', rendered in monochromatic colouring, with subtle gradations from grey into grey-black, and delicately touched with white, gold and silver. The figure emerges from the shadows enveloped in billowing veils and with an elusive and enigmatic half smile reminiscent of Leonardo's Mona Lisa. These veils would have been a form of ‘undress’, and with the lady's gesture of hand on heart, indicate that this is a private love token.
Unfortunately the red pigment used at that time for painting features fades easily, and here one can only imagine the striking effect the colour of her cheeks and lips would have had, seen within the cool monochrome of this elegant work.
