Portrait miniature of a Gentleman

“This portrait of an unknown gentleman was probably painted in Bull’s native Dublin.”

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A Gentleman, wearing a blue coat and frilled cravat, his hair powdered

Original gold fausse montre frame with plaited hair border, the reverse also with plaited hair

Executed in around 1780, this portrait miniature of an unknown gentleman was probably painted in Bull’s native Dublin (it is housed in a typically Irish frame of the period). He then arrived in London in about 1790, exhibiting at the Royal Academy from 1794. Presumably hoping, like many other portrait painters, to make his fortune in the capital city, Bull seems to have had reasonable success. Working from the distinguished address of Pall Mall from about 1795, he attracted prestigious sitters, including the future George IV, the Duke of York and Lord Nelson.