English: 35.297 PAINTING Miss Mary Burrell

Lavery, Sir John (1856 - 1941, Irish / Scottish) Britain, Scotland, Glasgow (place made) 1894-1895 oil on canvas framed: 2075 mm x 1164 mm x 110 mm; unframed: 1830 mm x 915 mm

Wearing a white silk evening dress, silk-lined velvet cape with fur collar, white gloves, with a white rose in her hair and carrying a black ostrich feather fan, Mary Burrell is presented as the epitome of sophistication and refinement in this elegant full-length portrait by Glasgow Boy painter John Lavery. She stands beside a Regency-style side table on which are pieces of Chinese porcelain (a vase with white roses and prunus pattern ginger jar) and a little silver bowl, placed to create a balanced composition and make an aesthetic statement about the sitter’s beauty and taste.