A portrait miniature of a Gentleman

Vaslet was an English portrait painter. His most common works were small or miniature oval pastels in the style of the Irish painter Hugh Douglas Hamilton (c.1740-1808), showing head and shoulders at 3/4 orientation, often viewed slightly from below - as depicted in this portrait. He was born in 1742 in York, the son of Andrew (or André) Vaslet (1694-1768), who ran a boarding school for young ladies in York.

Vaslet commenced his career as a soldier, and was an ensign when stationed in Gibraltar. He soon abandoned that profession and travelled to Italy to study painting. In 1770 and 1771, then resident in York, and having obtained many clients from amongst the local gentry, he submitted miniature portraits for assessment and display at the Royal Academy in London. In about 1775 he moved to Bath in Somerset, where he lived for the rest of his life.