Since 1826 Richard Westall had been employed in the Household of the Duchess of Kent as Princess Victoria's drawing master. In this portrait he depicts his young pupil (aged 11) sketching from nature. The Princess is seated on a bank by a stream in a wooded landscape with a classical urn behind, she appears innocently unaware that she is being observed. Her bonnet is discarded at her feet and her terrier, Fanny, is at her side.

Princess Victoria is portrayed wearing 'The Blonde Dress' (RCIN 74872) which is the earliest known surviving dress known to have been worn by the Queen. The lace is made using natural, unbleached silk rather than white linen thread, giving the dress its luminous, glossy appearance. Westall clearly shows the dress is constructed from a layer of silk lace laid on top of a second layer of silk.

This painting was produced for the Duchess of Kent and exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1830. It was eventually bequeathed by the Duchess to her daughter in 1861. A preliminary study for the portrait is also in the Royal Collection (RCIN 921547)

Signed and dated lower left: R. Westall. 1830