'Fanny', a Favourite Dog

A small black-and-tan dog lies on a carved stone ledge beside a scrolled urn, overlooking a pastoral landscape with distant ruins. The animal is the true subject here, observed with the affection and patience the old painters kept for their favourite sitters. Fur, eyes and posture are all set down with care, so its character comes through at any distance.

Its palette, measured from the canvas, is led by chocolate, with rust and taupe in support: a mid-toned, warm picture. Those warm tones give it a glow that comes alive in lamplight and deepens as the evening draws in. The wide format lets the scene unfold from side to side, with something new to find towards its edges.

A wide canvas like this one is a natural focal point above a sofa, a sideboard or a bed, where its width can carry the wall. For animal lovers it finds a home in a hallway, a study or a sunny kitchen. Chocolate and rust are easy to echo in cushions, a throw or a painted wall nearby, and it holds its own in a mixed gallery wall.

James Ward made the original in 1822; in the collection it is listed under Romanticism. It has the spirit of Romanticism, where mood, weather and feeling matter as much as the scene itself. This painting is printed to order on gallery-wrapped canvas in 30 × 40 cm or 40 × 60 cm, from the image you see here. The canvas wraps around its frame, so it arrives ready to hang, with no framing needed. Want yourself in it instead? Add a photo and see your portrait free before you order.