Fine Art Begins in America Flashcards
The Charlestown Stone Cutter, Kings Chapel, Boston, 1678, slate, Gravestone of Joseph Tapping
Comes from emblem books- printed books that told you what symbols were and when to use them, Hourglass running out, angel wings, skull, skeleton snuffing out a candle
People were not afraid of death in the way we are now—they confronted it they had images of it—Salem has a lot , 1670
Earliest gravestones 1660-1670s as tools get better and there is a desires to decorated
Possibly Augustine Clement, Dr. John Clarke, 1664
Continental Baroque
The white of the near eye is lighter than far eye
Position of collar not parallel to the lines of the eye or the mouth—careful observation which can only be noted as a personal gesture
Solidity of the objects
Red oak—looking at strainers, that was only available in America
Using a trephine – used to cut out holes in the skull
Haze saw—also used in skull
Clarke born in 1598- settles in Mass Bay—Moves to Newbury—1650 moves to Boston
Quite literary an upright man
Belief that posture had a bearing on your personality and how you were perceived in the world
Hand on skull also expresses his own morality
Projection of pride and of self tempered by piousness
Dedication to medical field but also self awareness that he too is mortal
Elizabeth Eggington, 1664
Unrelated to any of the known paintings of this period
She’s dressed well – She is the granddaughter of Rev. John Cotton, he dies then her mom dies—Portrait dates to year of her death at age 8
Descriptiveness of the courtly style but its looser and brushier
Gold necklace inset with pearls, she is very careful to show lace and lace trimmings, linen caps, all of which would have to be imported, has a miniature (Portrait), feather fan, wealthy young woman
Suggestion that the picture in necklace is her father – doesn’t seem like a mourning portrait – father merchant so remembrance
Could be right before or right after death
Elizabeth Paddy Wensley, ca 1670’s-80’s oil on canvas
Born in Plymouth, Settles in Boston,Marries john Wensley, They have 5 kids
Very sophisticated portrait: Depth in face, Dutch still life in background
Combined with this east Anglican emphasis on courtly flat stlye, getting her costume down, details, holds rose symbol of love and innocence — emblematic traditions that follow people around.
Freake-Gibbs Painter, Robert Gibbs at 4 ½ years, 1670
Medieval insistence on detail
Recent English arrival
No sense of depth lacking in atmosphere
Jonathan Fairbanks – specifically a painter of miniatures (Arg. Doesn’t hold)
Vs. Henry Gibbs vs. Margaret Gibbs
Bird in Henrys hand symbolizes love and innocence
Contrast Robert holds gloves– more masterful
velvet trimming on hanging sleeves, very distinct pattern that is repeated throughout all three
Mass sumptuary laws forbade finery like this unless the man had an annual income of 230 pounds
Not clear what sumptuary laws did—easy to think people followed them to the tee—citizens were so anxious of people moving beyond their wealth that they tried to pass a series of laws
Children are inching toward maturity but not yet breached…
The Freake-Gibbs Painter, the Mason Children: David, Joanna, and Abagail, 1670
Breached, Cheaper version than single portrait, 3 children in one instead of each child getting their own
distinction of wealth, how many people grouped, size of canvas, in addition to what they are wearing
Costume is somewhat fictitious in the 17th Century
High style wealth- abundance of lace, ribbons, intended to mark special, privileged social status
Sleeve sashes… oh boy! – but they’re Puritans, Fatalistic view of the world, Anxious of overly display of wealth, Coming over so THEY can worship freely
Cut garment of very fine fabric—balancing idea of wealth, seen as blessing, if you make money its because God likes you… VS. showing too much wealth, too much pride then you fall into vanity
argued that artist isn’t depicting them at a specific time but more as how their parents wanted them to be perceived
Instilling in people Protestant – shunning laziness, sloth, Rev. William Ames—not every desire for riches is covetness only the inordinate love of it
Doing work! Doing good works, a calling in life
Each girl wears a red coral necklace- believed to ward off childhood diseases – Joanna holds a fan which is a kind of accessory that fashionable ladies may carry for events. David has cane and gloves—emblems of social status and wealth
Abagail holds rose- symbol of innocence
Dressed as infant – get short-coated—then get breached
Dressing alike brings a sense of unity—strengths bonds of children – designed to give idea of wealth
Hands detail—stiff and emblematic of reaching out of one another despite their stiffness in painting
Portraits show an awareness to a single point perspective
See that the lines do somewhat converge, while not perfectly but, there is a vanishing point toward them
Rationalized known quantity since Renaissance – place thing in a rational manner (evident in N. Dutch—intuitive perspective ex van Eyck)
Signal and mean different things
Alberti’s perspective system—better in single portaits above, clear that system of rationalization was known to him
The Freake-Gibbs Painter, John Freake, c. 1671-74
Few portraits from this time of a merchant in non military dress
Venetian needlepoint collar
Gold is coming from Asia or South America being reimported in England coming back to colonies- same with silver buttons
White beautiful gloves, lack of dirt, lack of labor, aristocracy
Aristocracy undermine authority held by clergy
Not in military garb – subdued brown coat instead of black (Craven thinks big deal)
Puritans believed ins Save colors, browns, earth tones—encouraged against black because it was reserved for leaders and elders
Not closed cropped hair as clergy and lower class nor full length (Sign of decadency and royalist sympathy) If anything it suggests a middle ground. Stretching boundaries and testing but not about breaking social structure entirely
He has a great deal of silver buttons—sign of wealth
Eye contact, sign of wealth and status and being able to meet someones gaze
The Freake-Gibbs Painter, Elizabeth Freake and Baby Mary, 1671 and 1674
Strange sense of proportion in baby, Characterized by flatness and medieval insistence on detail
EAST ANGLIA preciseness seen there is the SAME
Style is the same, Her hair is covered—piety
Dressed to the nines though, sumptuous ribbons on sleeve, venetian lace, turkey worked chair, triple strand of pearls, four strand bracelet and gold ring—everything is imported- Shows trade
And she’s colorful
Could tell a story about English mercantilism and the amount of global trade there was—rising status of women throughout 17 and 18c. In order to connect object to audience you have to frame it in a way they’ll understand and appreciate
X-ray of painting shows us lead. Notice she has a lot of extra hands 1674 she had a baby. Hands were crossed in 1671. Got it touched up a little more. Get it changed. Went back a second and tried to make best of it.
Rationalized system of proportion of mans body
Suggest that there are two different artists- the Freake portraits fit into the established East Anglican tradition. The Gibbs don’t fit in so much. The problem is the Gibbs portraits aren’t English… they’re more Dutch, incredibly Dutch, hard to believe that a single artist would work in two styles.
Freake portraits all with a grey ground
Freakes are decidedly East Anglican—speaks to taste and style they have
Gibbs are different in following a Dutch tradition- outlook and sense of taste and aspirations to wealth manifest very differently to that of their peers despite them being all in and around Boston at the same time.
Pressures limits and subtle forces, also the time—representations of a momentary condition of what was wanted, what was able, what was acceptable to the community; making it far more complicated.
Captain Thomas Smith, Self Portrait, about 1680
In Boston in 1670’s to 1700, there were 13 Thomas Smith, 9 were Capt.
The diary of great grandson, mother owned painting, he was an officer in Cromwell’s army. - He made some things up not all factual,
Actual shading in face
Open space on outside—seeing his own achievements—he has red velvet drapery w gold tassle hanging over Cromwellian chair that has gold on it
He has never seen a skull but not a great poet, (Why pay attn. evil world, Farewell world, God is good, at which point I will live on eternally in the bosom of the Lord)
Venetian collar
But also mortality in skull rock hand placement
Have to admit you aren’t center of world to be pious and that you are ready to give up
God literally draws my heart up to him.
Puritan dream here- sophisticated style.. less wooden.
Not convincingly realistic but, there are passages of it that are better than the Courtly style
Detail of back window- impossible to sort out details - things accrue and get made up over time
One document is connected—record in accounts of Harvard College in 1680.
Thomas Smith (attrib.), Portrait of a Man (probably Elisha Hutchinson), c.1675-90,
Distinctive treatment of nose
Highlights
Clearly wig
Military uniform
Riches
Thomas Smith (attrib.), Major Thomas Savage 1679
Thomas Smith (Attrib.) Mrs Patteshall and Child, c. 1679
Child on left
Lace collar
Fancy sleeves
Dressed to nines
She’s a peach ripening
Fully modeled
Much more attention to create a sense of pictorial depth
