A three-quarter-length portrait to right in flag-officer's undress uniform, 1774-83, and a tie wig. He holds his hat in his right hand and in the right background is a ship with a blue flag at the main and a red at the fore. The painting was probably altered since Parry was Vice-Admiral of the Red when it was painted and became Admiral of the Blue in January 1778. The artist attempted to cover up the red flag at the fore but the original paintwork has now reappeared and the ensign may also have been altered.

Rigaud was born in Turin. He studied in Turin, Florence and Bologna, and lived in Rome for two years from 1768. In 1771 he settled in London, becoming an Associate of the Royal Academy in the following year and a full Academician in 1784. He received a steady stream of commissions for historical subjects, as well as decorative compositions and portraits. Rigaud was one of the major painters of large-scale decorative schemes for fashionable interiors of the late 18th century. As a portrait artist, he could be frank and expressive when not seeking heroic effects. The artist has signed and dated the painting ' Painted by J. F. Rigaud, London 1777' and he added an inscription later, 'William Parry, Esq. Admiral of the Blue'.