Mary Gertrude Spencer Stanhope

Spencer Stanhope's undated portrait of Mary Gertrude Spencer Stanhope — apparently another family member — held at the Whitworth Art Gallery represents his practice of family portraiture within the broader context of his aesthetic vision. As with his portrait of John Montagu Spencer Stanhope, this work documents both family relationships and the application of his developed artistic style to the demands of specific likeness. Spencer Stanhope was a painter of considerable private means who did not depend on commercial portraiture for his livelihood, and his family portraits consequently carry a personal intimacy distinct from the social performance of commissioned work. The Whitworth's holding of this canvas places it within an institution with strong collections of British art from this period, where Spencer Stanhope's work can be seen in relationship to the broader Pre-Raphaelite and Aesthetic traditions of which he was a part.

The oil on canvas likely deploys the clear drawing, careful attention to individual features, and relatively precise surface handling that characterises Spencer Stanhope's portrait work. Family subjects prompted an intimacy of observation that his more idealised mythological paintings do not require — here the specific individual must emerge through the aesthetic manner rather than being dissolved into it.