Nancy Parsons in Turkish dress

Nancy Parsons was one of the most famous courtesans of the eighteenth century. Her aristocratic clients included the young Duke of Grafton, prime minister between 1768 and 1770. Parsons was often seen with the married duke in public until they split in 1769, something that attracted criticism but which also gave them both an aura of transgressive glamour. Her image circulated widely in everything from fine engravings to scurrilous satirical prints. In this seductive portrait by George Willison, she is represented “à la Turque,” that is, in a fanciful western appropriation of Ottoman costume at a time when the Ottoman Empire was regarded as decadent, enervated by luxury and pleasure. Parsons had taken the Duke of Dorset as her lover when Willison painted this portrait, and it was reproduced immediately in mezzotint by the Irish engraver James Watson.

Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2022