Harriet Cheney, 43 Upper Seymour Street. London, to [John] Gibson

RA Collection: Archive

Archive context

Showing item 72 of 391 in this group

Reference code

GI/1/70

Title

Harriet Cheney, 43 Upper Seymour Street. London, to [John] Gibson

Date

16 Jun 1829

Level

Item

Extent & medium

1 piece

Historical Background

Harriet Cheney and her sons, Henry and Edward, were notable members of Anglo-Italian society, especially in Rome, in the 1820s and 1830s.

Content Description

Cheney praises Gibson's 'Cupid', which she had seen in the Royal Academy exhibition. She is critical, however, of Chantrey's 'Hector and Andromache', of the work of young Westmacott and his father, and of what she sees as Wilkie's declining abilities. She asks Gibson to make her bust in white marble, and says that she has heard that he had been honoured by the King of Bavaria. She concludes by giving news of friends and members of her family.