A Portrait Painter and his Wife

Anglo-Dutch School. Oil painting on canvas, A Portrait Painter and his Wife, Anglo-Dutch School, circa 1745. The interior of a carpeted room, with a view to a painting studio beyond. A lady sits left, at a table, knotting from a bobbin and wearing a white satin dress, pale blue coat edged with ermine (does this denote a noblewoman? - or was the sitter just sailing very close to the wind?), and a lace cap. A man is seated, right, behind the table, wearing a navy-blue coat, white satin waistcoat with gold braid, white stock and cuffs, and holding a porte-crayon. A cat and two dogs – a pug and a toy spaniel – are in the room. Behind is a studio, with unframed portraits (of not very English type) on the floor. The chair and table on the conspicuous Turkey carpet are unmistakably English. Upton House, Warwickshire (Accredited Museum)