Joseph Wright of Derby, The Annual Girandola at the Castel Sant’Angelo, 1775-76. Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. Wright of Derby: From the Shadows – the exhibition at The National Gallery which I will be talking about this Monday, 24 November at 6pm – is one of those exhibitions which takes a small slice of an artist’sContinue reading “262 – Stand well back”
Category Archives: 18th Century
254 – Joseph Wright, changing your point of view
Joseph Wright of Derby, Three persons viewing The Gladiator by candle-light, 1765. Private Collection, on long term loan to The Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. As my next talk, on Monday 25 August at 6pm, will look at the 18th century art in the Walker Art Gallery I thought that today I would think about oneContinue reading “254 – Joseph Wright, changing your point of view”
225 – Necessity is the Mother of Inventiom
Angelica Kauffman, Invention, 1778-80. Royal Academy of Arts, London. Rather brilliantly, Tate Britain’s encyclopedic survey of Women Artists in Britain, 1520-1920, opens with Angelica Kauffman’s Invention. It was one of the four Elements of Art which she was commissioned to paint for Somerset House, where they were installed in the ceiling of the Royal Academy’sContinue reading “225 – Necessity is the Mother of Inventiom”
Still not ‘ladylike’…
Day 16 – Giulia Lama, Saturn devouring his Child, c. 1720-23, Private Collection (Sold at Christie’s, 2011). Greetings from Venice! I’m here In Search of Giulia Lama, researching for my eponymous talk this Monday 10 June at 6pm. What better opportunity to revisit one of my early posts from lockdown 1: it dates from 3 April 2020Continue reading “Still not ‘ladylike’…”
Back to the Crossroads
Angelica Kauffman, Self Portrait at the Crossroads between the Arts of Music and Painting, 1794. National Trust Collections, Nostell Priory, West Yorkshire. This Monday, 11 March, I will talk about the Royal Academy’s long-awaited exhibition Angelica Kauffman. And to introduce that, I am re-posting an entry from the early days of this blog – ‘day 14’ toContinue reading “Back to the Crossroads”
Back to the King.
Rosalba Carriera, King Louis XV of France, 1720-21. Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden. This Monday, 5 February at 6pm I will be introducing one of the National Gallery’s fabulous, focussed, and free exhibitions, the second in their Discover series, with a talk I am calling Discovering Liotard. However, as I am in London this week deliveringContinue reading “Back to the King.”
Doggedly re-posting
William Hogarth, The Painter and his Pug, 1745. Tate Britain, London. I’m not much of a dog person, but I have developed a fondness for William Hogarth’s pet pug, not least because it rejoiced in the name of Trump (no relation). This portrait – if that’s what it is – belongs to Tate, rather thanContinue reading “Doggedly re-posting”
185 – To finish the King.
Rosalba Carriera, King Louis XV of France, 1720-21. Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden. If I’m honest, it’s not been the best week. To start off with, last week I said I would be doing a play in February: I’m not. It’s a long story, but not something I needed to lose my head about, though, andContinue reading “185 – To finish the King.”
152 – One and a half princesses…
Thomas Gainsborough, The Three Eldest Princesses: Charlotte, Princess Royal, Augusta and Elizabeth, 1783-84. The Royal Collection. This Monday, 14 March, I will be talking about Gainsborough’s ‘Blue Boy’ and the following week, I will be returning to the Masterpieces from Buckingham Palace which I didn’t get round to talking about the last time I tried… soContinue reading “152 – One and a half princesses…“
150 – Pinkie
Thomas Lawrence, Sarah Goodin Barrett Moulton: “Pinkie”, 1794. The Huntington Library, Art Gallery and Botanical Gardens, San Marino, California. As my next two talks are entitled Red and White it seemed like a good idea to write about something related to both, and hence, the colour pink. Not only that, but today’s painting, by ThomasContinue reading “150 – Pinkie“
dr richard stemp 