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Study for a Portrait of a Woman

1670s
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 639
This sketch provides a good example of Lely’s working method as one of the most successful portraitists in England in the second half of the seventeenth century. Following the example of Anthony van Dyck, Lely painted only the sitter’s head in his or her presence, sometimes laying in an outline for the pose and costume. He then employed assistants to complete the drapery and background. For certain well-known sitters, Lely would retain his original head study to aid in the production of replicas. Because Lely assimilated his female sitters to a contemporary ideal of beauty, it can often be difficult to identify them today, as is the case with this unknown woman.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Study for a Portrait of a Woman
  • Artist: Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes) (British, Soest 1618–1680 London)
  • Date: 1670s
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 26 1/2 x 21 1/8 in. (67.3 x 53.7 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1906
  • Object Number: 06.1198
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

More Artwork

More Artwork
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Study of the Forearms and Hands of a Woman, Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes) Dutch, British, Black chalk with touches of red, heightened with white, on buff paper.
Study of the Forearms and Hands of a Woman
Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes)
ca. 1665
Lucy Loftus (incorrectly called Jenny Deering)
Multiple artists/makers
1757
Mary Capel (1630–1715), Later Duchess of Beaufort, and Her Sister Elizabeth (1633–1678), Countess of Carnarvon, Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes) Dutch, British, Oil on canvas
Mary Capel (1630–1715), Later Duchess of Beaufort, and Her Sister Elizabeth (1633–1678), Countess of Carnarvon
Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes)
Sir Henry Capel (1638–1696), Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes) Dutch, British, Oil on canvas
Sir Henry Capel (1638–1696)
Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes)
A Knight of the Order of the Garter, Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes) Dutch, British, Black and white chalk, gray pastel, on blue-gray paper
A Knight of the Order of the Garter
Sir Peter Lely (Pieter van der Faes)
1663–71

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