Johan Joseph Zoffany, 1733–1810, German, active in Britain (from 1760)
Title:
Warren Hastings
Date:
1783-1784
Materials & Techniques:
Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
28 1/2 × 24 1/4 inches (72.4 × 61.6 cm)
Credit Line:
Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Fund
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B2012.17
Gallery Label:
In 1783, the German-born painter Johan Zoffany sailed from London to India, intending to make his fortune or, as the artist Paul Sandby put it, to “roll in gold dust,” an ambition he was to achieve. On arrival in Calcutta, Zoffany was inundated with commissions for portraits from British residents eager to take advantage of his talents. His chief patron was Warren Hastings, the Governor-General of Bengal since 1772. Since the 1750s the East India Company had aggressively expanded its control over northern India. Corruption and financial mismanagement were widespread, and Hastings had been hired to impose order. He developed a well-oiled administrative machine and introduced reforms, but within a few years, rumors of military aggression, bribes, and excessive consumption of luxury goods were circulating. Zoffany painted at least four portraits of Hastings including this one, which shows the Governor-General dressed in plain clothes and showing signs of strain. Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2016
