Portrait of a Lady in Blue

Gainsborough painted this around 1780, at the height of his London years, and it is the only work of his in Russia. It reached the Hermitage in the early 20th century, left to the museum by a Russian collector, and it arrived catalogued as a duchess. There is no document behind that name. The woman's identity is simply unknown, and some have noticed she resembles portraits of the painter's own wife from those same years. What is not in doubt is the handling, the powdered upswept hair, the silvery blue silk brushed in with the light, quick strokes Gainsborough was famous for. He built the whole picture around that cool blue and the pale skin above it, and left the sitter's name for us to guess.