# Thomas Hudson artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/thomas-hudson/
Profile generated: 2026-05-24T21:41:15.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Death date: 1779-01-26
- Nationality: English, British
- Movements: Georgian-era English portraiture
- Common media: oil on canvas, drawing, printmaking

## About Thomas Hudson

Thomas Hudson (1701–1779) was an English portrait painter active during the Georgian era. Born in Devon, he trained under the prominent painter Jonathan Richardson I and later married Richardson's daughter, cementing a close professional and familial bond. Hudson became one of the most fashionable portraitists in London during the 1740s and 1750s, painting aristocrats, military officers, clergy, and other prominent figures of the day. His portraits are held in major public collections including the Tate, the National Portrait Gallery, and the National Gallery of Art. Beyond painting, Hudson was an avid collector of Dutch, Flemish, and Italian art and drawings. His studio employed several assistants who later became notable painters in their own right. Collectors today encounter Hudson's work primarily through the British Old Master painting market.

## Common works and media

Hudson's most commonly encountered works are three-quarter and full-length oil-on-canvas portraits of British gentry, aristocrats, military officers, and clergy from the 1730s through the 1760s. Many were engraved by contemporary printmakers, so engraved reproductions after his portraits also circulate. Original drawings are rarer at auction but do appear. Works attributed to Hudson's studio or circle are more numerous than fully autograph paintings and represent a distinct collecting tier.

## Market and appraisal context

Thomas Hudson's portraits appear regularly in the British Old Master auction market. Key factors affecting appraisal include whether the work is fully attributed to Hudson, produced with studio assistance, or from his broader circle. Sitter identity matters: portraits of known historical figures, titled aristocracy, or military commanders typically achieve higher prices. Full-length compositions generally command a premium over bust or three-quarter formats. As with any 18th-century painting, condition, provenance, and exhibition history are critical. His drawings and prints surface less frequently but are of interest to collectors of British works on paper.

## Appraisily data basis

This artist page draws on identity records from Getty ULAN, VIAF, Wikidata, the RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History, and the Tate collection, combined with Appraisily auction-lot data including sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots where available.

## Sources

- RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/40295
- Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/thomas-hudson-281
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1502003
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500001473
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/64271510/
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Hudson_(painter)
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n80110777