George Henry LAPORTE R.I. (1802-1873)

1825 Derby Day

oil on canvas

37 ½ x 55 inches, inc. frame

Provenance: Private Collection

Price: Sold

George Henry Laporte was appointed animal painter to the King of Hanover and to The Duke of Cumberland.

This masterpiece by Laporte of the 1825 Derby Finish shows Laporte’s strong handling of lithe thoroughbred horses at full stretch. It is an unusually large painting and was clearly an important commission.

The son of the artist John Laporte - who was a friend of H.B. Chalon and the brother of the artist Mary Ann Laporte - George Henry Laporte is described in a small book about his father as a man of the great charm of manner. He first exhibited at the British Institution in 1818 and was a founder member of The Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (formerly the New Watercolour Society).

Laporte contributed forty-three plates to The Sporting Magazine. At their best, Laporte’s horses, with their liveliness and sharpness of movement, give the impression of being active strong animals: the essence of the sporting ideal.