Burt, Albin Roberts

Introduction:

An engraver, portrait miniaturist, portrait painter, drawing master, printer and son of a London grocer, ALBIN ROBERTS BURT (1783-1842), though crafting few silhouettes painted a considerable number of mostly creditable coloured profile miniatures and coloured full-length compositions. By and large an itinerant artist, for the last decade of his life he resided in Reading, Berkshire.

While other profiles surely exist, seemingly only 4 are recorded. Three appeared in London auction rooms in 1932, and a fourth came to light in 2009. The latter, painted in 1811, unusually has the sitter's name, age and date inscribed below the bust-line termination. Unusual too is the papier-mache frame's hanger. Cast specifically for Burt, an artist's palette garlanded with flowers and foliage bears the inscription 'A.R.Burt, Miniature Painter'

Painted on card, the profile itself  is a workmanlike study of Yorkshireman and former boarding school master and apothecary, George Alderson Taylor (1746-1812). Black bodycolour is highlighted with gum arabic shading, hair with Chinese white and thinned black watercolour. Cursory brushwork indicates a waistcoat's pattern.

Curiously, plain or highlighted profiles are never mentioned in newspaper advertisements or his 6 known printed trade-labels which collectively describe a broad skillset. A ca.1812 Bath trade-label, possibly his first, promotes him a miniature painter, portrait engraver and teacher of drawing and miniature painting. A later but undated trade-label offers portraits in oil at 4 guineas; cameo likenesses carved on shell, 3 guineas; miniatures on ivory, 3 guineas, full-length 2 guineas; sketches in colour £1.11 shillings 6 pence; pencil sketches 15 shillings and coloured profiles 10 shillings 6 pence. Miniatures and portraits could be '...faithfully copied and Oil Paintings Cleaned and Repaired'.

Additionally, in the WORCESTER JOURNAL 6th August 1812, Burt offered miniatures (possibly sillhouettes) on ivory, for rings, bracelets and lockets fom 3 guineas upwards, though commissions were likely sparse as no jewellery work appears recorded.

To be continued.