Half length portrait of Richard Codman seated in a chair and holding a letter. Wearing a black coat, white cravat and cuffs, gray wig. Red curtain depicted in corner; Ornate gold frame.
portraits
paintings (visual works)
oil paint (paint)
canvas
Picture
Portrait
Portrait
This portrait of the "founder" of the Codman collection was painted in London in 1793 for the sitter's sister, Parnell, by the well-known colonial artist John Singleton Copley. It was given to Ogden Codman, Jr. by his uncle, who was also named Richard Codman. Ogden, Jr. was particularly pleased to have the portrait, not only because of Richard Codman's connection with the painting collection, but also because he shared his great-uncle's love of fine living and of France.
In 1794, John Codman paid John Singleton Copley £94.10, an enormous expense, for a copy of a painting of his father and for making this portrait of his brother, Richard. The Codmans were well-connected merchants and wealthy investors. Richard Codman, who preferred a luxurious life in Europe to his home in Boston, Massachusetts, was the family reprobate, described by later generations as fond of society, careless in money matters, but with nice taste in pictures and statuary. This painting still hangs at the Codman Estate in Lincoln, Massachusetts.
Codman, Richard, 1762-1806
Original to Codman House (Lincoln, Mass.),
Elegant Embellishments (1982)
Copley, John Singleton (American painter, 1738-1815) (Artist)
Boston, MA, USA, SUFFOLK
44 3/8 x 36 1/4 x 3 3/8 (HxWxD) (inches)
Bequest of Dorothy S.F.M. Codman
1969.779
Massachusetts (United States)
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