The charm of Reynolds

The charm of Reynolds

This picture was given to the National Gallery in 1866. The figure on the left is the Rev Geo. Huddersford, who, before he took orders, studied art with Sir Joshua. The other figure, with violin in right hand, is J. C. W. Bamfylde. It is a representative picture enough, showing how closely the painter observed his sitters and how complete and skilful was his characterisation. Portraits painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds are a national asset, and appeal to the general public in this light almost as strongly as they appeal to the smaller section that takes a definite interest in pictures. The value of the portraits varies considerably; it is probable that the artist produced between four and five thousand in his time, sometimes completing three or four in a week for years on end, and even in his more leisured times producing six or seven per month, so it was of course inevitable that their value should not be equal. The very early work painted in Devonshire is of little worth. Italy opened the eyes of Joshua Reynolds as it has opened the eyes of so many British artists since his time. Fortunate in his life the painter was; in a certain sense, unfortunate in his art. The beauty he has committed to canvas had begun to pass before the artist's days were numbered, and many of his most successful works are to-day no more than a pale reflection of their former selves, a remnant most forlorn of what they were. One of his most painstaking biographers and soundest critics, Sir Walter Armstrong, has written, "Speaking roughly, Sir Joshua's early pictures darken, the works of his middle period fade, those of his late maturity crack." ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 68490
Author: Mason, James
Release Date: Jul 10, 2022
Format: eBook
Language: English
Publisher: T.C. & E.C. Jack
Publication Date: 1911
Publisher Country: United Kingdom