Thomas John Clavering, later Sir Thomas Clavering, Bart., and Catherine Mary Clavering: The Clavering Children

This portrait vividly demonstrates the way differences between boys and girls were viewed in the 18th century. Thomas holds the reins of power, grasping his dogs’ leash assertively, while his sister Catherine is cast in a more nurturing and submissive role, hugging a puppy to her chest. Through costumes that evoke the ancient past and a composition that makes these children tower over the low horizon, Romney lends his young subjects a seriousness and monumentality rarely seen in portraits of young children.