John Russell, Portrait of Ann and Maria Russell, 1804, colored chalks and pastel, 40 x 30 inches, Paul Mellon Fund. The successful and prolific eighteenth-century portraitist John Russell (1745-1806) was best known for his work in pastels (often referred to as "crayons"). Apprenticed to the portrait painter Francis Cotes, Russell set up his own practice in 1767 and was appointed Crayon Painter to George III and to George, Prince of Wales, in 1788. Russell evolved a distinctive and effective technique, which he described in his popular manual, Elements of Painting with Crayons (1772). After tracing the sitter's outline in chalk on blue paper and laying in the colors, Russell smudged the outlines using his fingers and crayon the resulting blurred effect and velvety textures endowed his portraits with remarkable vitality and luminosity. This double portrait of his daughters Maria (1782-1861) and Ann (1781-1857), which was acquired by the Center, is a superb example of Russell's virtuoso pastel technique. Made in 1804, two years before his death, the portrait was exhibited at the Royal Academy, but was essentially a private work, which remained in the family until 2001. A fervent Methodist, Russell had a large and close family he often depicted his wife and children, and this touching image of sisterly affection exemplifies the eighteenth-century notion of sensibility. Russell's daughter Ann, shown on the right holding a porte-crayon, became a successful artist, who exhibited at the Royal Academy.