Jeremy Lipking - Portrait of the Artist J Todorovitch

Jeremy Lipking - Portrait of the Artist J Todorovitch, a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

[Oil on canvas, 101.6 x 60.96 cm]

Nathaniel Bacon - Sir Nathaniel Bacon [c.1625]

Nathaniel Bacon - Sir Nathaniel Bacon [c.1625], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

A wealthy landowner from East Anglia, and a relation of Francis Bacon, Nathaniel Bacon (1585 – 1627) was also an exceptionally skilful amateur painter. Only a small group of his paintings survive, but the remaining works testify to his remarkable abilities. He was particularly known for his extraordinary, large-scale kitchen and market scenes which were dominated by still-life depictions of enormous vegetables and fruit, and often included a buxom maid. This was a type of painting popular in the Low Countries which Bacon visited often; he is the only English artist known to have worked in this genre. Among his surviving works is a small group of self-portraits. This one shows him as wealthy gentleman rather than as an artist. The strong contrasts between the light and dark areas, the polished refinement of the painting, and the painted stone oval which surrounds the portrait, all reflect his knowledge of Netherlandish art.

[Oil on panel, feigned oval, 575 mm x 445 mm]

Lawrence Alma-Tadema - Greek Woman [1869]

Lawrence Alma-Tadema - Greek Woman [1869], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

[Oil on canvas, 47.1 x 66.7 cm]

Johannes Moreelse - Old Alchemist Fanning the Fire with Bellows

Johannes Moreelse - Old Alchemist Fanning the Fire with Bellows, a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

Johannes Moreelse (Utrecht, c. 1603 - 1634) was a Dutch Baroque painter. Moreelse died in his home town during a plague epidemic. His small number of works were only assigned to him in the 1970s.

[Oil on canvas, 90.5 x 107.5 cm]

William Bouguereau - Portrait of Gabrielle Cot [1890]

William Bouguereau - Portrait of Gabrielle Cot [1890], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

Gabriel Cot was the daughter of Bouguereau's most famous student, Pierre August Cot. Bouguereau was planning to use her for one of his major paintings, and so he started this as a study for that painting, but, as he worked, he was so captivated by Gabriel's beauty, including her intense inner beauty, that he finished it as one of his only un-commissioned portraits.

[Oil on canvas, 38 x 45.5 cm]

Isador Kaufmann - Portrait of a Rabbi with Prayer Shawl

Isador Kaufmann - Portrait of a Rabbi with Prayer Shawl, a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

[Oil on panel, 32.385 x 39.37 cm]

Bartolome Esteban Murillo - The Repentance of Saint Peter [1645-50]

Bartolome Esteban Murillo - The Repentance of Saint Peter [1645-50], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

[Oil on canvas, 120 x 96.5 cm]