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Charles William Lambton ('The Red Boy')

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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This portrait of Charles William Lambton – aged six or seven – was commissioned by the boy’s father John George Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, a Whig politician and MP for County Durham. Popularly known as The Red Boy, it remained in the Lambton family until it was acquired by the National Gallery in 2021. It is acknowledged as one of Thomas Lawrence’s masterpieces and, a sign of the image’s enduring popularity, it was the first painting to be reproduced on a British postage stamp in 1967. Sitting on a promontory overlooking a moonlit sea, Lawrence portrays Lambton as a child wanderer, lost in contemplation of the sublime power of nature. The flowers opening next to him symbolise his young age. He is at the beginning of his journey through life, though this was cut short – he died of tuberculosis aged only thirteen.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

Charles William Lambton ('The Red Boy')

Date

1825

Medium

oil on canvas

Measurements

H 140.5 x W 110.6 cm

Accession number

NG6692

Acquisition method

Bought with the support of the American Friends of the National Gallery, the Estate of Miss Gillian Cleaver, Art Fund, The Al Thani Collection Foundation, The Manny and Brigitta Davidson Charitable Foundation and through private appeal, 2021

Work type

Painting

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Normally on display at

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

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