Readhead, Henry (McKechnie Section 3)

Recorded by Jackson as Readhead (The History of Silhouettes) and as H. Redhead (Dictionary). Mayne and Woodiwiss give the latter form of the artist's name. Surviving inscriptions clearly indicate that the spelling 'Readhead' is correct. Jackson owned a pair of Readhead's silhouettes, and there was an example in the Wellesley collection.

Readhead worked from 54 Upper Norton Street, Fitzroy Square, London. He was certainly at this address in 1791, for the two profiles formerly owned by Jackson (of Mr and Mrs Dales of Woodhill Farm, Beverley, Yorkshire) were so dated and inscribed. The few extant silhouettes by Readhead all appear to date from about this year. Upper Norton Street is now Bolsover Street. The poor rate books do not list Readhead's name at No. 54 during the relevant period: during 1787, 1788, 1789 and 1791 the rates were paid by one John Brandwood; in 1793 by one Romeo Arbuthnot. This district was occupied by a number of artists at the time, and one can only assume that Readhead rented a studio at 54 Upper Norton Street for a short time.

The rare work of this artist is exceptionally good, and individual in execution. Only profiles of men have been seen, all painted in the same style. The phrase 'time of sitting 5 minutes', on Readhead's trade label, suggests that he may have painted free-hand.

The only dead black area of the profiles is the face. Both the ear and the eyebrow are carefully painted. The sitter's wig is shown by a mass of minute strokes, only visible beneath a magnifying glass. The bows of pigtail ribbons are very small, being indicated by a shape that appears, if the profile is held horizontally, like the crown on a piece of Duesbury Derby porcelain.

Even more individual is the painting of clothing. No fingerprinting was used for the base; instead a mass of stippled dots was made with the point of a brush and then trimmed to an exacting standard of neatness with a very fine needle. The darkest mass of dots indicated the shadows at the arm-hole and beneath the collar and lapel of the frock of the 1790s. Lea (see Section Six) used this stippling method for his sitter's faces, but not for their clothing; his technique, therefore, was the reverse of Readhead's in this respect. The bust-line termination usually shows a peak pointing downwards, either at the junction of the arm with the body or in the centre of the arm.

Readhead backed his work (which was painted on convex glass, usually decorated with plain verre églomisé) with card. I once owned a silhouette by Readhead (of a Mr G. Paynter) which was in a papier mâché frame of normal size and with plain verre églomisé glass; measuring 2¾ x 2³⁄₈ in., it was almost circular

There is a profile painted on paper (Mayne, Plate 33), from the Christie collection, which, apparently reframed, bears the pencilled inscription 'By Readhead' on the back. To judge from the sitter's dress, it dates from c.1785. The style has nothing in common with that of the silhouettes painted on glass, being much more similar to that of W. Phelps. I see no justification, therefore, for ascribing the piece to Readhead and for including an entry on him in Section Two.

The one known trade label is handwritten:

Mr. H. Readhead

Profilist

No. 54, Upper Norton Street

Fitzroy Square.

Time of sitting 5 Minutes

Jackson recorded a similar inscription, which included the date 1791. The silhouette formerly in my collection was inscribed 'fecit' (instead of Profilist).

Ills. 1135-1137, 1231