Grinling Gibbons
Grinling Gibbons c1690 by British Engraver John Smith (1652 – 1743) from a painting by German Painter Sir Godfrey Kneller (1646 – 1723)
This is a three quarter length portrait that represents the virtuoso sculptor Grinling Gibbons (1648 – 1721), who was acclaimed for his pearwood sculptures.
He is wearing a long curly wig and is dressed in the period costume of the day as well as a large cloak.
He is standing by a marble table with his right hand holding a cast of Proserpina; which is part of Bernini’s famous sculptural group “Pluto and Proserpina”; while in his left hand he is holding a compass.
This is a remastered digital art old masters reproduction of a public domain image that is available as a canvas print online.
The Below Information Is Derived From Wikipedia.org
John was born Daventry, Northamptonshire England and was sent to study under a painter named Tillet and later studied mezzotint engraving under Isaac Beckett (1653 – 1719) and Jan van der Vaart (1650 – 1727).
He became the favorite engraver of Sir Godfrey Kneller (1646 – 1723), whose paintings he reproduced.
John is believed to have created approximately 500 plates, with about 300 of these plates being portraits of notable men and women during the reigns of Charles II (1630 – 1685) and George II (1683 – 1670).
