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Sir Codrington Edmund Carrington
Thomas Lawrence, born 1769 - died 1830 - Enlarge image
Sir Codrington Edmund Carrington
- Object:
Oil painting
- Place of origin:
London, England (probably, painted)
- Date:
1801 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Thomas Lawrence, born 1769 - died 1830 (painter (artist))
- Materials and Techniques:
oil on canvas
- Credit Line:
Bequeathed by Miss L. M. Carrington
- Museum number:
1359-1874
- Gallery location:
British Galleries, room 52a, case WN
Object Type
At the beginning of the 19th century, the expansion of British trade overseas created many more opportunities for individuals to acquire greater wealth and status. To proclaim their new position in society, people would often commission a portrait by a fashionable artist.
People
Lawrence was regarded in his own generation as the true successor to Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641) and Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792). He combined a highly skilled technique with a sensitive rendering of character and his dashing, romantic portraits were in great demand.
Subjects Depicted
Sir Codrington Edmund Carrington was a member of an aristocratic family which owned extensive plantations in Barbados. He claimed descent from Sir Michel de Carrington, standard-bearer to Richard I (1157-1599). Sir Edmund was knighted in June 1801 and appointed first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in Ceylon. In August of the same year he married his first wife, Paulina. The V&A has a companion portrait of Paulina, also by Lawrence. Both portraits were probably commissioned to celebrate this marriage and promotion before Sir Edmund left England to take up his post.
