Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1978.43.17
Gallery Label:
At the age of three, the future Whig Member of Parliament John Dodd (1717–1782) of Swallowfield, near Reading, Berkshire, inherited a fortune in property from his father and, a year later, inherited a further, enormous fortune from the widow of his great-uncle, Sir Samuel Dodd, who had been Chief Baron of the Exchequer. In adult life he lived comfortably, pouring much of his wealth into a somewhat sluggish political career. In this painting, John Vanderbank portrays Dodd with his elegant greyhound as a promising, well-dressed young man, aged twenty-two. Trained by Sir Godfrey Kneller, Vanderbank enjoyed a high reputation as an artist in his short career, but he died heavily in debt due to an extravagant and dissolute lifestyle at age forty-five. Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2016