Arthur DevisReino Unido, 1712–1787The Duet
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Museu Vitória e Alberto
SalaBritish Galleries, Room 52, The George Levy GalleryLondres, Reino Unido
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- Verificado
- há 8 dias
- Neste estado desde
- 25 de set. de 2026
- Fonte
- Os dados da própria coleção do museu
About the painting
Object Type
Group portraits like this oil painting of an unknown couple were popular from about 1730. Paintings showing proud owners at home were a major source of income for many painters in Britain in this period.
Subjects Depicted
Families appeared in these pictures either outdoors on their estates or in an interior reflecting their social rank. The 'settings' often did not represent real interiors, and Devis tends to show them as sparsely furnished. However, the detail of the paintings on the walls and the view of the park through a fashionable Venetian window imply that the background to the scene may be based on a real house. The woman is shown seated at a harpsichord and a man standing behind handing her sheet music, implying wealth, culture, taste, harmony, and leisure.
People
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The painter Devis was famous for informal portraits like this one, known generally in the 18th century as 'conversation pieces'. these were usually small canvases depicting groups of figures taking tea, playing cards and music, in contrast to the solemn, formal and static nature of later 17th-century portraiture. Devis's customers tended to come from the class of wealthy landowners rather than from the nobility, though both groups often preferred the new, relaxed and agreeable way of being portrayed.
Museu Vitória e Alberto
Pormenores
- Número de inventário
- P.31-1955
What it shows
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Fontes
- Museu Vitória e Alberto: the museum's own open data · obtido há 8 dias
- Imagem: Museu Vitória e Alberto — © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
