Portrait Of Alexander Van Aken (1701-1757), Oil On Panel, English, 18th Century

Beautiful 18th century English portrait in oil on panel by the famous drapery painter Alexander van Aken. This is probably a self-portrait, depicting the artist in three-quarter view in his studio, wearing a red robe over a red drape, a turban, and caught in the act of painting. Drapery painters were specialist painters who completed the dresses, costumes, and other accessories worn by the subjects of painted portraits, and from about 1725 to 1760, a large majority of the clothing and landscapes in British portraits were painted by the workshop of Alexander Van Haecken and his brother Joseph (died 1749). Working for portraitists with large clienteles, the brothers were in fact recognized as some of the leading drapery painters active in mid-18th-century England, and the connection between the brothers and the portraitist Thomas Hudson, as well as the similarities between Van Haecken's sketches in the National Gallery of Art, Scotland, and surviving portraits, is well documented. The work of drapery painters was essential to the success of many London portraitists. Famous painters executed the face and hands, while drapery painters were responsible for the costume. This recently discovered portrait is an important work that helps us understand the creative and commercial workings of the 18th-century portrait studio. (See the Yale Center for British Art collections for a portrait of the same sitter, attributed to Thomas Hudson (1701–1779)). Panel: 29" x 25" / 25cm x 20cm. Frame: 17" x 14.5" / 44cm x 37cm