Portrait of Admiral Sir Edward Hughes (1717/1720–1794) Sir Joshua Reynolds

Sir Joshua Reynolds was one of the most defining portraitists and art theorists in the history of the British Isles, appointed the first president of the Royal Academy in 1768. In this portrait he immortalised Sir Edward Hughes (ca. 1720–1794), Admiral of the Royal Navy, commander-in-chief of the East Indies Station, and recipient of the Order of the Bath. In 1786 and 1787, Reynolds painted a number of portraits of the successful admiral, whom he depicted in elegant naval attire, but in an extremely direct manner, without any particular idealisation. The dark tones that dominate the work, the dusky, cloudy atmosphere and the dramatic contrast of light and shade are all distinctive features of the painter’s late works and military portraits.