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Item Ref. 4227

WILLIAM ALPORT, died 1831

This is a painted silhouette of a gentleman with a prominent nose wearing a black coat and tied cravat.

The silhouette is painted on card and is housed in the original papier-mâché frame backed with an unbroken version of the rarely seen trade label for William Bullock, in whose museum Alport had a booth between 1806 and 1809.

Framed size: 57/8 x 51/8" (158 x 131mm)

S O L D !

William Bullock was a wealthy Sheffield goldsmith and jeweller who amassed a collection of artefact, antiquities and stuffed animals with which he established a Museum of Natural Curiosities in the 1790s. In 1801 he transferred his museum to Liverpool where William Alport and two other silhouette artists worked for him. Bullock himself was not a silhouettist though he claimed to have invented a physiognotrace, a device that used wire and lenses to capture and reduce an outline profile. In 1809 Bullock transferred his museum to the newly built Piccadilly Egyptian Hall in London. Both Alport and the physiognotrace remained behind in Liverpool where Alport continued to work under his own name. Bullock's collection of over 32,000 items was disposed of by auction in 1819.

Item Ref. 4296

CHARLES ROSENBERG (1745-1844)

This early nineteenth century silhouette depicts a gentleman with a distinctive profile. He has a pigtail wig that is tied with a small bow and is wearing a frilled chemise. His coat is decorated with the breast star of the Order of the Garter. The Order of the Garter is the oldest and most prestigious order of chivalry in the United Kingdom and membership is granted only by the monarch.

The silhouette is reverse painted on convex glass and backed with buff card. It is set in the original papier-mâché frame with a star hanger and backed with the artist's trade label no.8 printed ion blue paper which is believed to have been in use around 1808.

Framed size: 5¼ x 4½" (133 x 115mm)
Provenance: The Christie Collection (September 1945 - November 1995)

Price: £375

Austrian-born, Charles Rosenberg is believed to have come to England as one of the entourage accompanying Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz when she arrived in 1761 to marry King George III. This connection may explain why he enjoyed royal and aristocratic patronage throughout his career. Rosenberg settled in Bath where he eventually married in 1790. He was one of the most successful silhouette artists of the period.

 

 

Item Ref. 3585

NATHANIEL BERMINGHAM (Irish, 1712? - 1774)

This is a rare 18th century intricately cut full-length portrait of a classical maiden stepping out in a dance in her dainty shoes and long flowing robes with flowers and ostrich feathers in her upswept hair. In her outstretched arms she is trailing a delicate garland of flowers.

The portrait has possibly been inspired by a contemporary image of a classical muse and been cut in white paper apparently as a single piece without breaks using slashes on her dress to create a gentle sense of movement with small scrolls on the ribbons and fine stippling for a softer finish on her face and neck. The finest of the flowers in the garland can only be fully appreciated by the use of a glass. The portrait has been laid loosely on a sheet of paper that has been blackened by the artist on one side only. Pre-blackened paper did not become readily available until the 1820s.

The cut-work is in remarkable condition. There is a break in the long ribbon running down from her hair and another at the top of the garland by her raised hand. It's possible too that there may be a tiny loss to the top edge of the flowers in her hair. Otherwise it is in perfect condition and very clean. The reverse side of the blackened paper is extensively browned and a little brittle round the edges but a piece of acid-free card has now been inserted to separate it from the wooden backing board in order to stabilise it.

The portrait is housed behind old glass in a period oval giltwood frame with a piecrust edge. This is most likely the original frame as this style was in common use at the time especially for pastel profiles. The frame has warped slightly and has been re-gilded at some point.

Literature: See British Silhouette Artists and their Work 1760-1860, page 288, illus. 295 for a similar cut portrait of Judge Jeffreys

Framed size: 9 x 73/8" (227 x 190mm)

S O L D !

Born in Dublin around 1712, Nathaniel Bermingham was apprenticed to a herald painter. He created intricate portraits, landscapes and coats of arms cut out in white paper or vellum. Bermingham went to London in 1744 where he exhibited five pieces of work at the Free Society of Artists exhibition of that year. He sold his work though Mrs Pilkington's print shop in London though in an attempt to increase sales they were promoted as the work of Mrs Pilkington herself. Laetitia Pilkington was an Anglo-Irish poet and In her Memoirs she described her friend Bermingham as "a most ugly, squinting, mean-looking fellow ... [in whom] impudence and ignorance seemed to vie for pre-eminence". The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York has a cut portrait of Jonathan Swift by Bermingham; the Victoria & Albert Museum, London also have examples of his elaborate cut work.

 

Item Ref. 3156

JOHN MIERS (1758-1821)

This is a quality 18th century jewellery silhouette of a gentleman wearing a cravat with lace ends, a style that was typical of the 1790s. He also has on a wig with a pigtail.

The small profile is painted on ivory and is set in a handsome gold frame with an enamelled border on the front and a solid reverse.

Framed Size: 1 x 5/8" (23 x 16mm)

Price: £480

Although he never trained professionally, John Miers is considered to be the finest of the 18th century silhouettists. His career began in Leeds when he took over his father's business as a coach-painter & gilder. Having recently married, Miers was keen to expand the business and, in addition to preparing and selling paints, he advertised profile shades in miniature for 2s. 6d. each. He clearly excelled at this from the start as within a few years this had become his main line of business and prompted Miers to move his family first to Edinburgh and eventually to London where he ran a busy and successful studio at the Strand.

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