A “devil-like figure” featured in a painting by the famous artist that is more than 230 years old has been rediscovered after a recent restoration.
The discovery comes as a result of conservation work carried out by the National Trust on a painting of a Shakespeare scene by 18th century artist Joshua Reynolds, who died in 1792.
Referred to by the Trust as a “devil”, an evil spirit or devil, the painted figure proved controversial at the time.
The figure, covered in layers of paint and varnish, was included in Reynolds’ painting based on Shakespeare’s death scene, titled “The Death of Cardinal Beaufort.”
Specifically, the painting shows a scene from Shakespeare’s “Henry VI, Part 2” with the king witnessing the death of Cardinal Beaufort.
The figure, including fangs and sinister expression, was painted on the headboard, directly above the dying Beaufort’s head.
“It didn’t conform to some of the artistic rules of the time to have a poetic figure of speech represented literally in this monstrous figure,” said John Chu, the Trust’s national senior curator of photographs and sculpture.
“While it was considered acceptable in literature to introduce the idea of the devil as something in one’s mind, to include it visually in a painting gave it too physical a form. Some even argued that it should have been painted, although records of conversations with the artist show that he resisted such attempts to change the work.”
The painting by Reynolds, first unveiled at the Shakespeare Gallery in 1789, is one of four that have been preserved by the National Trust to mark the 300th anniversary of the artist’s birth.
Referred to by the Trust as a “devil,” an evil spirit or devil, the painted figure proved controversial at the time. National Trust
The artwork by Reynolds was created at the end of his career as a commercial commission for the Shakespeare Gallery in London’s Pall Mall, which paid 500 guineas for the painting, according to the Trust.
“The gallery also created prints for sale and export, something that was dominant in Britain at the time. Engraver Caroline Watson produced the plates for the print of Reynolds’ painting, the first copy showing the devil, although a second print in 1792, after the artist’s death, shows an attempt to remove him from the print plate,” the Trust said.
“Perhaps it’s no surprise that it has receded so far into the shadows of the picture. It seems that it was misunderstood by the early conservators,” Chu said of the figure’s disappearance. “Several decades after painting, the area appears to have degraded into small islands of paint and become less clear due to the constituent parts of the paint. The deterioration of successive layers of varnish over the years makes it less and less visible.”
The figure, including fangs and sinister expression, was painted on the headboard, directly above the dying Beaufort’s head. National Trust
After being examined by painting experts at the National Trust, it became clear that the demon in the artwork had been painted by several people and included six layers of varnish.
“Reynolds has always been difficult for conservators because of the experimental way he worked, often introducing unusual materials in his paint medium, striving for the effect he wanted to achieve,” said Becca Hellen, the Trust’s senior national conservator of paintings.
“The area with the demons is very difficult. Because it is in the shadows, it is painted with earthy browns and dark colors that will always dry more slowly, causing a shrinking effect. … With layers added by early restorers, it has become a mess of misinterpretations and multiple layers of paint.
“This is a large painting, and we wanted to make sure it still represented what Reynolds originally painted, including allowing the ghost to be revealed by removing all the non-original dark varnish and making sure it still showed its shape and perspective correctly with the work we did.”
The painting is now back on display at Petworth House in West Sussex after treatment.
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
