Laurence Sterne
(1713-1768), Writer and divine; author of 'Tristram Shandy'Early Georgian Portraits Catalogue Entry
Sitter in 16 portraits
Laurence Sterne went from being a country parson to a European celebrity after the publication of his best-selling The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy (1759-66). This was a novel like no other. Its comedy and originality lay not just in the way it told the story – via Sterne’s fictive alter ego 'Parson Yorick' – but also in the attention the author gave to the design of the book, which uses wiggles, dashes and other printing devices to give emphasis and create surprise. Tristram Shandy, and Sterne’s second novel A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy (1768), have never been out of print and are available in translation all over the world.
by Unknown artist
oil on canvas, circa 1760
NPG 2022
by Louis Carrogis ('Louis de Carmontelle')
watercolour, circa 1762
NPG 2785
by Joseph Nollekens
marble bust, circa 1766
NPG 1891
by Edward Fisher, printed for Robert Sayer, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, (1760)
NPG D21363
by William Holl Sr, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
stipple and line engraving, (1760)
NPG D42129
by Edward Fisher, printed for Robert Sayer, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, (1760)
NPG D2980
by H.P., after Sir Joshua Reynolds
etching, (1760)
NPG D13966
possibly by Abraham Wivell, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, (1760)
NPG D18836
by Henry Bone, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
pencil and ink drawing squared in ink for transfer, September 1814 (1760)
NPG D17533
by Samuel William Reynolds, published by Hodgson & Graves, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, published 1836 (1760)
NPG D4315
by Samuel William Reynolds, published by Hodgson & Graves, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, published 1836 (1760)
NPG D14596
by Edward Fisher, printed for Robert Sayer, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, (1760)
NPG D20401
by Samuel William Reynolds, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, published 1836 (1760)
NPG D4314
by Samuel William Reynolds, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, published 1836 (1760)
NPG D4316
by Samuel William Reynolds, published by Hodgson & Graves, after Sir Joshua Reynolds
mezzotint, published 1836 (1760)
NPG D19360
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