Lord Grey and Lady Mary West as Children

William Hogarth

c. 1740

Recently conserved with funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Among the most prominent English artists of the eighteenth century, William Hogarth was famous for his images of "modern moral subjects"—entertaining social and political satires that criticized aristocratic decadence while promoting middle-class virtue. Hogarth also painted portraits in order to subsidize his career as a satirist and establish himself as a virtuoso painter on par with other European artists. While influential for his "conversation pieces," or casual group portraits of conversing figures, Hogarth presented with Lord Grey and Lady Mary West as Children a more traditional, formal portrait, combining his characteristic attention to detail with his tendency to convey broader moral statements through subtle symbolism. The masterfully displayed lavish fabrics and small, detailed accoutrements—including a puppy, a biscuit, and a teething toy called a coral—all indicate the high social standing as well as the age of the sitters. The casual cruelty of the boy toward the squirming, anxious pup, however, provides an amusing insert into the otherwise serious and dignified tradition of upper-class portraiture. [Permanent collection label, 2016]

Artist William Hogarth (British, 1697–1764)
Title Lord Grey and Lady Mary West as Children
Date c. 1740
Medium Oil on canvas
Dimensions unframed | 42 1/8 x 35 5/8 in.
Credit line University purchase, Parsons Fund, 1936
Object number WU 2147

Technique oil painting
Work type painting

Real / Radical / Psychological: The Collection on Display
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 09/09/2016 - 01/15/2017

Studying the Art Object: Materials and Methods
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 08/20/2010 - 01/10/2011

Great British Paintings from American Collections: Holbein to Hockney
Huntington Library, Art Collection, and Botanical Gardens (San Marino, California), 02/03/2002 - 05/05/2002
Yale Center for British Art (New Haven, Connecticut), 09/27/2001 - 12/30/2001

Beginnings: The Taste of the Founders
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 01/21/2000 - 03/19/2000

Images of Aristocrats and Republicans
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 06/02/1985 - 08/11/1985

Old Masters
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 05/15/1983 - 08/21/1983

The Art of the Portrait
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 09/20/1982 - 01/09/1982

The Centennial Exhibition
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 05/15/1981 - 10/11/1981

Summer Selections
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 05/24/1979 - 08/31/1979

Portraits and Landscapes
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 06/01/1978 - 08/31/1978

Charles Parsons: Portrait of a St. Louis Collector
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 12/12/1976 - 01/30/1977

William Hogarth
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (Richmond, Virginia), 01/30/1967 - 03/05/1967

Moments in Portraiture
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art (Kansas City, Missouri), 03/16/1966 - 04/13/1966
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis

English Conversation Pieces
Detroit Institute of Arts, 01/25/1948 - 02/29/1948

Manchester Art Treasures, lent by George Harry, Earl of Stamford
Venue Unknown, 01/01/1857 - 01/01/1857

1936
Knoedler and Co., M., and Howard Young Gallery, New York

This artwork record may be incomplete or need refinement. Our staff actively researches the collection and revises records when new information is available. If you have questions or comments about this record, please contact us.