Portrait of Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, Jacob Morland of Capplethwaite
Date:
2017
Materials & Techniques:
Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
120 5/16 × 93 5/16 inches (305.6 × 237 cm)
Credit Line:
Yale University Art Gallery and Yale Center for British Art, Purchased with a gift from Mary and Sean Kelly in honor of Courtney J. Martin and with the Janet and Simeon Braguin Fund and Friends of British Art Fund
Kehinde Wiley based his portrait of the British artist Lynette Yiadom-Boakye on Romney’s 1763 painting of Jacob Morland. Known for reimagining historical portraits with contemporary Black subjects, here Wiley adopts the visual language that Romney used to signal his sitter’s power. In the eighteenth century, gun ownership and hunting rights were restricted to landowners; Yiadom-Boakye’s hunting outfit and gun thus signal her propertied status. Although Wiley has faithfully re-created the setting of Romney’s typical British hunting portrait, he changed the subject’s pose to an active one. Yiadom-Boakye carries her weapon with both hands as if she has just completed a successful hunt, the spoils scattered around her feet. Gallery label for Romney: Brilliant Contrasts in Georgian England (Yale University Art Gallery, 2025-03-28 - 2025-09-14)
