Henry Brintnell Bounetheau, Sir Joshua Reynolds, King Lear in the Storm, ca. 1842, watercolor on ivory, sight 6 3⁄8 x 5 1⁄2 in. (16.2 x 14.0 cm) rectangle, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Henry Du Pré Bounetheau, 1946.3.14
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Artwork Details
- Title
- King Lear in the Storm
- Artists
- Copy after Sir Joshua Reynolds
- Date
- ca. 1842
- Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- sight 6 3⁄8 x 5 1⁄2 in. (16.2 x 14.0 cm) rectangle
- Credit Line
- Gift of Mrs. Henry Du Pré Bounetheau
- Mediums
- Mediums Description
- watercolor on ivory
- Subjects
- Figure male — bust
- Landscape — weather — storm
- Literature — Shakespeare — King Lear
- Object Number
- 1946.3.14
Artwork Description
Henry Brintnell Bounetheau copied a painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds, president of the Royal Academy in England, to make this miniature. Such copies were common practice among miniaturists and full-scale painters alike. In Shakespeare’s King Lear the storm signifies the onset of the king’s madness, after he discovers the betrayal of his two elder daughters. Conservation of this miniature was made possible through a generous grant provided by the Smithsonian Women’s Committee.
