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Portrait of Charlotte and Sarah Carteret-Hardy
Also known as: Charlotte and Sarah Hardy; The Daughters of Colonel Thomas Carteret Hardy
About the Artwork
Charlotte (left) and Sarah were 19 and 21, respectively, when this portrait was painted on the occasion of Sarah’s marriage to the topographer Daniel Lysons. The sisters wear fashionable gowns and jewelry, but their affectionate posture conveys a sisterly tenderness that transcends glamour. There was a seemingly insatiable demand for Thomas Lawrence’s portraits representing stylish English society, but he was notoriously slow working. Although this picture was begun in 1801, it still was not finished in 1806 when a friend noted its presence in the artist’s studio.
Provenance
By descent to Daniel L. Lysons, Hempstead Court, Gloucestershire (Burton, Knowles & Co., Gloucester, 21 April, 1887, no.284) Camillo Roth (1888) Charles Crews (sale: Christie's, London, 1 July 1915, no. 105 to Colnaghi) John L. Severance By descent to Daniel L. Lysons, Hempstead Court, Gloucestershire (sale: Burton, Knowles & Co, Gloucester, 21 April, 1887, no. 284); Camillo Roth (1888); Charles Crews (sale: Christie's, London, 1 July, 1915, no. 105 to Colnaghi); (Colnaghi, London); John L. Severance John L. Severance [1863-1936], Cleveland, OH, by bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art 1942-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Exhibition history
Exhibition of the John L. Severance Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (November 12, 1942-March 14, 1943). Exhibition of the Month: A Portrait of the So-Called 'Column and Curtain' School. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 1-31, 1943). Sir Thomas Lawrence, Regency Painter. Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, MA (organizer) (April 27-June 6, 1960). Style, Truth and the Portrait. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (October 1-November 19, 1963). British Gallery Reinstallation (June 2020). The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Thomas Lawrence (British, 1769–1830)
- Date
- 1801
- Medium
- oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- Framed: 161 x 135 x 11 cm (63 3/8 x 53 1/8 x 4 5/16 in.); Unframed: 129 x 103 cm (50 13/16 x 40 9/16 in.)
- Type
- Painting
- Classification
- Painting
- Department
- Modern European Painting and Sculpture
- Credit line
- Bequest of John L. Severance
- Accession no.
- 1942.642
More by Sir Thomas Lawrence in museum collections
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00009279
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