Portrait of William Linley

Lawrence was a young Bath-based society portraitist, just as his career was about to take off.^[2] The Linley Family of Bath were well-known musical performers, connected with the theatre. Lawrence was a friend of William Linley who was a year younger than him. The painting may have served as an audition for his bid for a royal commission.^[3] George III reputedly joked that Linley needed a haircut.^[4] Nonetheless, Lawrence was soon afterwards commissioned to paint the King's wife Queen Charlotte. That painting's success at the Royal Academy's Summer Exhibition led to Lawrence's establishment as a leading society portraitist. Today it is part of the collection at Dulwich Art Gallery in South London.^[5] It was given as part of a bequest by the painting's subject along with other works featuring his family.^[6]

• Holmes, Richard. Thomas Lawrence Portraits. National Portrait Gallery, 2010.
• Levey, Michael. Sir Thomas Lawrence. Yale University Press, 2005.
• Roberts, Jane. George III and Queen Charlotte: Patronage, Collecting and Court Taste. Royal Collection, 2004.
• Stourton, James. Great Smaller Museums of Europe. Scala, 2003.

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