A pastel portrait of Captain John Matthews, RN, half-length, in full dress uniform. John Matthews was made a Captain on 13 September 1793 and was still serving in this rank when he died on 21 March 1798, indicating a posthumous commemorative image.

John Russell was the foremost pastellist in eighteenth-century Britain, and his perceptive portraits attracted a fashionable clientele. As well as being an artist, Russell was also a bookseller, printseller, writer and amateur astronomer. He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1788, and became Crayon Painter to King George III and to George, Prince of Wales.