Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Arundel

Object Details

Title:

Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Arundel

Artist/Maker(s):

Anthony van Dyck (Flemish, 1599 - 1641)

Culture:

Flemish

Date:

about 1620 - 1621

Medium:

Oil on canvas

Dimensions:

102.6 x 79.7 cm (40 3/8 x 31 3/8 in.)

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Depicted three-quarter length, the Earl of Arundel sits before a tapestry curtain on the left and a landscape background on the right. The long, tapering fingers of his left hand hold the gold medallion of Saint George, one of the emblems worn by the twenty-four knights who made up the most eminent and noble circle around the king. His elongated, pale face contrasts with the white ruff around his neck and the scarlet chair upon which he sits. Turned slightly towards the viewer, the expression on Arundel's face is alert but reserved.

Arundel was one of the great patrons and collectors of art in England in the early 1600s. He was best known for his collection of Venetian paintings, which included works by Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese. During a brief first visit to London around 1621, Anthony van Dyck was commissioned to paint this portrait for Arundel, who recognized the young artist's talent.

Provenance
about 1620/1621 -

Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Arundel, 1585 - 1646 (London, England; Arundel Castle, Sussex, England), commissioned from the artist, 1620/1621; by gift to George Villiers.

George Villiers, first duke of Buckingham, 1592 - 1628 (London, England), possibly York (later Buckingham) House (London, England).

Mrs. David Guggenheim (New York, New York)

Mr. Francis Lenyon

and Mrs. Francis Lenyon

- 1723

Philippe II, duc d'Orléans and regent of France, 1674 - 1723 (Paris, France), by inheritance to his son, Louis, 1723.

1723 - 1752

Louis, duc d'Orléans, 1703 - 1752 (Paris, France), by inheritance to his son, Louis-Philippe, 1752.

1752 - 1785

Louis-Philippe, duc d'Orléans, 1725 - 1785 (Paris, France)

- 1801

François Antoine Robit (Paris, France) [sold, Robit sale, Paillet, Delaroche, Paris, May 11, 1801, lot 36, through Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Lebrun (Paris, France) to Michael Bryan.]

1801

Michael Bryan, 1757 - 1821 (London, England) [sold, Bryan sale, Bryan, London, November 6, 1801, lot 92, to Francis Egerton.]

1801 - 1803

Francis Egerton, third duke of Bridgewater, 1736 - 1803 (London, England; Worsley Hall, Lancashire, England)

1803 - 1833

George Granville Leveson-Gower, first duke of Sutherland, 1758 - 1833 (London, England; Trentham Hall, Stafford, England; Dunrobin Castle, Highland, Scotland), by inheritance to George Granville Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 1833.

1833 - 1861

George Granville Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, second duke of Sutherland, 1786 - 1861 (Dunrobin Castle, Highland, Scotland), by inheritance to George Granville William Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 1861.

1861 - 1892

George Granville William Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, third duke of Sutherland, 1828 - 1892 (Dunrobin Castle, Highland, Scotland), by inheritance to Cromartie Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 1892.

1892 - 1913

Cromartie Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, fourth duke of Sutherland, 1851 - 1913 (Trentham Hall, Stafford, England; Dunrobin Castle, Highland, Scotland)

by 1917

Fritz von Gans (Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany)

by 1920

Kurt Walter Bachstitz Gallery, active 1921 - 1942 (The Hague, The Netherlands)

by 1929 - 1930

Daniel Guggenheim, 1856 - 1930 (New York, New York), by inheritance to his wife, Mrs. Daniel Guggenheim, by 1930.

1930 - still in 1939

Mrs. Daniel Guggenheim, 1884 (New York, New York), by inheritance to Robert Guggenheim.

by 1950 -

Robert Guggenheim (Washington, DC), by inheritance to Mrs. David Guggenheim.

by 1980 -

John A. Logan (Washington, DC), possibly by inheritance to Rebecca Pollard Logan.

by 1981 - 1983

Rebecca Pollard Logan (Washington, DC) [sold, Logan sale, Christie's, London, July 8, 1983, lot 92, to a private collector through Thomas Agnew & Sons, Ltd.]

1983 - 1986

Private Collection (Switzerland)

1986

Thomas Agnew & Sons, Ltd. (London, England), sold to the J. Paul Getty Museum, 1986.

Exhibitions
British Institution 1820 (1820) (64)
  • British Institution for Promoting the Fine Arts in the United Kingdom, (London), 1820
Paintings by Anthony van Dyck (1929) (14)
  • The Detroit Institute of Arts, (Detroit), 1929
Masterpieces of World Art 1939 (1939) (99)
  • New York World's Fair, (Queens), 1939
The Young van Dyck (September 19 to November 9, 1980) (65)
  • National Gallery of Canada, (Ottawa), September 19 to November 9, 1980
Van Dyck in England (November 19, 1982 to March 20, 1983) (2; and introduction to catalogue p. 11)
  • National Portrait Gallery (Washington D.C.), November 19, 1982 to March 20, 1983
The Earl and Countess of Arundel: Renaissance Collectors (May 2, 1995 to October 1, 1995) (2; and introduction to catalogue p. 11)
  • The J. Paul Getty Museum, (Malibu), May 2 to October 1, 1995
Dynasties: Painting in Tudor and Jacobean England, 1530 - 1630 (October 12, 1995 to January 7, 1996) (2; and introduction to catalogue p. 11)
  • Tate Britain, (London), October 12, 1995 to January 7, 1996
Van Dyck (March 15 to December 10, 1999) (2; and introduction to catalogue p. 11)
  • Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten Antwerpen, (Antwerp), May 15 to August 15, 1999
  • Royal Academy of Arts (London), September 11 to December 10, 1999
Artistic Relations between Madrid and London, 1604-1654 (March 14 to June 2, 2002) (2; and introduction to catalogue p. 11)
  • Museo del Prado, (Madrid), March 14 to June 2, 2002
Van Dyck (October 8, 2008 to January 25, 2009) (Cat. 7)
  • Musée Jacquemart-André, (Paris), October 8, 2008 to January 25, 2009
Van Dyck & Britain (February 18 to May 17, 2009) (Cat. 7)
  • Tate Britain, (London), February 18 to May 17, 2009
Bibliography

Waagen, Gustav Friedrich. Treasures of Art in Great Britian: Being an Account of the Chief Collections of Paintings, Drawings, Sculptures, Illuminated Mss., &c., &c. 3 vols. (London: John Murray, 1854), vol. 2, p. 69.

"Acquisitions/1986." The J. Paul Getty Museum Journal 15 (1987), pp. 180-81, no. 41.

Jaffé, David. Summary Catalogue of European Paintings in the J. Paul Getty Museum (Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum, 1997), p. 38, ill.

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