Samlesbury hall; Lancashire

George Stubbs was an English painter and anatomist renowned for his precisely observed paintings of horses, often set within refined landscapes or aristocratic settings. Working in the eighteenth century, he combined meticulous naturalism with classical composition, elevating the animal portrait to a form of high art. His anatomical studies, informed by direct dissection and skeletal analysis, distinguished his work from contemporary horse painters and established him as a master of equine representation. Stubbs also painted portraits and historical subjects, but his legacy rests primarily on paintings that married scientific accuracy with aristocratic sensibility.

Liverpool, UK