John Gibson, 1790–1866, British, active in Rome, Italy
Title:
An Unknown Young Woman
Date:
late 1820s
Materials & Techniques:
Marble
Dimensions:
Overall: 29 x 18 x 8 1/2 inches (73.7 x 45.7 x 21.6 cm)
Inscription(s)/Marks/Lettering:
Inscribed on edge on back of bust: "FECIT ROMA."
Credit Line:
Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Fund
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1980.35
Classification:
Sculptures
Collection:
Paintings and Sculpture
Subject Terms:
woman | portrait
Currently On View:
Not on view
Publications:
Angus Trumble, The Marble Bust, Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, 2004, no. 4, V 1304 (YCBA)
Gallery Label:
This unidentified portrait bust may be dated to the late 1820s, when the classicizing chiton or dress and contrasting "Bartoliniesque" hairstyle were in vogue (named after the Italian sculptor Lorenzo Bartolini, who introduced modern coiffure to classicizing female portrait busts). It came to the Center from a private collection in Liverpool, whence in about 1800 the Gibson family planned to emigrate to America but changed their mind at the last minute after Mrs. Gibson, the artist's Welsh-speaking mother, swore she could never set foot on a ship. Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2005