A Portrait of Dr John Derrington wearing a blue Suit

A Portrait of Dr John Derrington wearing a blue Suit, standing by a

Monument with an Inscription in Greek to Hippocrates, his Springer

Spaniel at his Feet



Haytley was principally a portrait painter, believed to be from Preston as was his illustrious contemporary, Arthur Devis with whom he also shared a stylistic affinity.



He is first recorded as providing flower drawings in 1740 for Elizabeth Robinson (later Mrs. Montagu, with whose family he became very friendly). Waterhouse says of him: `his "Mrs. Montagu at Sandleford Priory", produced in 1744, includes a remarkable naturalistic landscape as well as elegant figures in a conversation piece, and is one of the best examples of the genre.`



On rare occasions he painted landscapes in their own right as opposed to backgrounds for his portraiture. A pair of roundels depicting Chelsea Hospital and Greenwich Hospital were presented by him to the Foundling Hospital in 1746 and Grant describes them as `evidence of his taste and skill in urban landscape….hold their own with their similarly circular companions by Wilson, Gainsborough and Wade.`



Many of his portraits were full size and he exhibited portraits at the Society of Artists in Great Britain between 1760 and 1761. Titles include, "A Boy giving a Bunch of Grapes to his Brother" and "A Lady`s Portrait with a Letter in her Hand".





Bibliography:

Dictionary of British Landscape Painters - M H Grant

Dictionary of British 18th Century Painters - Ellis Waterhouse