Family Conversation Piece

This well-finished silhouette conversation piece was created by the Royal Victoria Gallery during the mid 1840s, most likely whilst the Gallery were working either in Scotland or Ireland as evidenced by the style of the sitters’ attire and the castle in the background. The little boy’s plaid dress and tartan socks may though point more towards Scotland. Each figure has been carefully cut, with Chinese white and gilding both used to good effect to bring out the costume details. The father has luxuriant whiskers and wears a bowler hat and knotted neck-tie, his over-full jacket pocket bulging out of shape. In his hand he holds a letter or bill which is possibly headed with the artist’s name ‘Frith’. The folds of the mother’s dress are particularly well depicted as too are the little girls’ dresses and pretty curls.

The background is painted in sepia watercolour with swags and a castle landscape. A remnant of a hand-written label reverse possibly names three of the children as Bridget (more Irish perhaps?), William and George. The family name appears to Watt—-.

The background card has some age-browning and spotting to the lower half. It is unsigned (apart from possibly on the father’s letter) but the composition is undeniably that of the Royal Victoria Gallery. The silhouette is presented in a good quality bird’s eye maple veneer frame.

The Royal Victoria Gallery was a family-run business. Brothers Frederick and Henry Frith were both cutters of silhouettes whilst their father, John, having been a portrait artist, probably painted their colour profiles and their sister, Letitia, did much of the bronzing and gilding. Advertising as ‘PAPRYOTOMISTS to His Late as well as to her present Most Gracious Majesty’, they toured extensively and produced highly finished work. When the introduction of photography threatened their livelihood, the brothers embraced the new technology and opened a Photography Studio before emigrating to Australia.