The British painter Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723–1792) was the leading portraitist of his day. He forged a successful career creating images of English lords and ladies in sumptuous dress set in front of picturesque landscapes. However, his portrait of an atypical sitter is considered by scholars to be his masterpiece. “Portrait of Mai (“Omai”)” depicts the first officially recognized Polynesian to visit Britain.
Reynolds’ Old Master Style
Reynolds was born the son of an Oxford educator. In 1740, he apprenticed to a prominent portraitist in London from whom he learned his trade. Interestingly, Reynolds never received formal academic instruction in painting. An extended voyage in Italy, where he sketched ancient sculptures and Renaissance paintings, highly influenced the development of his dramatic Old Master style.
Upon his return to England, Reynolds established his own practice and quickly became the nation’s most famous portraitist, with scores of aristocrats commissioning likenesses. In 1759, he had over 150 sitters. Elected to the prestigious post of president of the Royal Academy, the artist was later honored with a knighthood.
The Polynesian Mai (around 1751–1779) was born on the island of Ra'iatea, near modern-day Tahiti, to a minor courtier. When his island was attacked by Boraborans, he escaped to Tahiti. In 1774, the young man journeyed to England, accompanying the famed explorer Capt. James Cook, with the aim of requesting military support to overthrow his island’s invaders.
Mai was welcomed by British high society, which had become fascinated by the South Pacific due to Cook’s voyages. Mai, called Omai in England, met King George III and attended cosmopolitan intellectual parties with the likes of Samuel Johnson, who was also a friend of Reynolds. In addition to Reynolds’s portrait, Omai was painted by the Welsh artist William Parry in a group picture with a British botanist and Swedish naturalist. It showcased the elite circles in which Mai traveled.
Admired for his character—he was astute, courteous, and dignified—Mai stayed in England until 1777. He returned to Polynesia, once again traveling with Cook, and settled on the island of Huahine with assistance from the British. Little is known of his subsequent life. It is believed he died of a virus just two years later. Although he lived a short life, he left his mark on British culture and art history.
Mai’s Portrait
Reynolds sketched Mai around 1774 and painted his portrait circa 1776. Unlike most of his art, the painting wasn’t commissioned. Mai was regarded as an ideal sitter due to his celebrity. The painting was exhibited at the Royal Academy’s annual exhibition, where it was widely acclaimed. Reynolds knew this sensational work was a highlight of his career. He never sold it in his lifetime; he kept it as a showpiece at the entrance to his studio.
The full-length seven-foot portrait is imbued with majesty. London’s National Portrait Gallery writes, “Exceptional in many ways, it was the first British portrait to represent a person of colour with grandeur, dignity and authority.” Mai is portrayed in front of an idealized rural landscape with tropical elements. A prominent palm tree is on the left-hand side of the canvas while on the right a winding river culminates in mountains in the distance. Cloudy skies survey the scene.
Mai cuts an imposing figure. Barefoot, he is cloaked in cream-colored robes that resembles a toga. Scholars believe that the depiction of fabric was probably meant to characterize Polynesian “tapa,” or bark cloth, which the upper class wore in Mai’s highly stratified society. This isn’t how Mai dressed while living in England; he adopted British clothing during his visit.
Mai’s dynamic pose can be traced to classical antiquity. One of the most famous statues of the period is “Apollo Belvedere,” now part of the Vatican Museums’ collection. (The sculpture has just been placed back on view after a multi-year restoration that entailed laser cleaning and fracture repair.) This ancient Roman marble sculpture, a copy of a celebrated Greek bronze, portrays the god just after shooting an arrow. After it was discovered in 1489 among ancient ruins, the sculpture’s grand gestures and complex contrapposto inspired many artists from the Renaissance on.
In addition to Reynolds’ painting of Mai, allusions to “Apollo Belvedere” can be found in the positioning of several sitters in his portraits. One example is his picture of “Captain the Honourable Augustus Keppel,” a work that launched Reynolds’s artistic reputation upon his return from Italy.
The Painting’s Saga
The painting remained with Reynolds until his death in 1792. It was then sold in a studio sale for 100 guineas to the artist’s friend, the 5th Earl of Carlisle. Henceforth, “Portrait of Mai (“Omai”)” resided at the aristocrat’s famed stately home, Castle Howard, until 2001. That year, it was auctioned at Sotheby’s by the earl’s descendants for $16.5 million. The sale made headlines for the high price and because the buyer, an art dealer bidding on behalf of a client, had exceeded his bid limit.Subsequent specific ownership remained mysterious, with a Swiss company named as the owner, though the company was controlled by the prominent Irish businessman John Magnier. Shortly after the purchase, the owner applied for an export license for the picture as he wanted to take it to Ireland, but it wasn’t granted. An anonymous person offered to buy the painting and gift it to the Tate, but the owner refused to sell it.
The saga continued: In 2005, the owner was given a temporary export license to loan the portrait to the National Gallery of Ireland. When the loan expired, the artwork was returned to British soil and put into storage. In 2021, the owner, later confirmed to still be Magnier, applied for a permanent export.
Given that the painting combines historic significance and artistic virtuosic achievement, this time the National Portrait Gallery began a historic fundraising campaign to purchase the work so that it could be placed in a museum. The task was daunting, as the portrait’s value had increased to $62 million. The export ban was extended multiple times to allow for further efforts.
A solution was announced in 2023, the year of the 300th anniversary of Reynolds’s birth. In a groundbreaking negotiation, the National Portrait Gallery and the J. Paul Getty Trust, which runs the Getty Center, agreed to jointly purchase the painting, with each side paying half the price. The NPG’s funds came from several sources, including the government’s National Heritage Memorial Fund, major foundations, and public contributions.
The complex sale and acquisition of this Reynolds masterpiece has a satisfying ending: The NPG and the Getty Center will rotate exhibition of the portrait between their respective institutions. It is currently on view at the former museum and will travel in 2026 to the Getty in Los Angeles, staying through the city’s 2028 Olympics.
