Benjamin Truman 1774

Thomas Gainsborough painted Benjamin Truman, the famous London brewer, in oil on canvas. Notice the imposing scale of the portrait which echoes the sitter’s status. Truman is positioned within a carefully constructed landscape: the positioning of the trees directs the viewer’s gaze towards the man, and the curves of the landscape lead to the open, expressive sky above. Gainsborough's brushwork and choice of colours work together to convey a sense of movement and liveliness. He uses the materiality of oil paint in an inventive way to describe textures and atmosphere. The fluidity and responsiveness of oil paint allowed Gainsborough to create a portrait that transcends mere representation and flirts with abstraction. Consider how Gainsborough’s formal choices create a harmonious balance between man and nature, a symbolic representation of the sitter's successful negotiation between the commercial world of London and the idyllic world of the English countryside.