The eighteenth-century marked a transformative period for portrait miniatures in England, as artists shifted from painting on vellum to ivory—a medium that enabled greater luminosity and refinement but required new technical skill. Early in the century, Continental artists working for the Hanoverian court maintained older traditions, but by the 1740s native English painters had mastered ivory and began to define the field.
This period saw the rise of what has been called the “Modest School,” characterized by small-scale, intimate portraits that appealed to a growing middle class. Miniatures became cherished objects—portable markers of status and tokens of affection exchanged among family and loved ones.
By the later decades of the century, artists increasingly looked to the influence of artist, Sir Joshua Reynolds (English, 1723-1792), and the Royal Academy, introducing greater ambition and stylistic variety. The fashionable elite turned to Richard Cosway, whose elegant, idealized portraits set new standards of refinement.
By 1800, miniatures had grown in scale and sophistication, balancing intimacy with the grandeur of contemporary oil painting.
The Starr Collection of Miniatures in the Bloch Galleries
Presented to the Nelson-Atkins by Mr. and Mrs. John W. Starr in two major gifts from 1958 and 1965, and numerous additional gifts through the years, the Starr Collection of Miniatures illustrates the history of European portrait miniatures through more than 250 objects. The exhibition of portrait miniatures in Gallery P24 changes every twelve months to highlight the variety of the collection and to limit exposure of the light-sensitive pigments.
Organized by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
Header image: (Left) Samuel Collins (English, ca. 1735–1768). Portrait of a Man, 1759. Watercolor and shell silver on ivory, Sight: 1 1/4 x 1 1/8 in. (3.2 x 2.9 cm). Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John W. Starr and the Starr Foundation, F58-60/133.
(Right) (After) Sir Joshua Reynolds (English, 1723–1792). Portrait of Richard Burke, ca. 1785. Watercolor on ivory, Sight: 2 1/8 x 1 3/4 in. (5.4 x 4.5 cm). Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Starr and the Starr Foundation, F58-60/155.