Study of Catherine Madox Brown as a Child

This drawing is a portrait of Ford Madox Brown's daughter, Catherine, at 18 months old. This is one of five studies drawn between 1847 and 1857 depicting Brown’s four children. They are part of a substantial group of drawings of his children made for personal record and also as studies for future paintings. Brown's second daughter, Catherine (1850 - 1927) was born to his second wife, Emma. Catherine featured in much of the artist's work including 'Pretty Baa Lambs', 'Waiting', 'The Last of England', 'The Nosegay' and 'Cordelia's Potion. Catherine also took up painting, helping her father as a studio assistant and exhibiting her own work at the Dudley Gallery and Royal Academy until she married music critic Franz Hueffer in 1872. Their eldest son became famous, after a change of surname, as the novelist Ford Madox Ford.