From Publishers Weekly
Eighteenth-century portraitist and landscape artist Thomas Gainsborough's most recent retrospective reaffirms for a new generation his sturdy place in the mainstream of British art history. Born in Sudbury in 1727, Gainsborough went to London to study (first as a silversmith), where he ran with the smart set but struggled to sell work. Commissions grew when he moved to Ipswich, but with money still a problem, he and his family moved to Bath, where he matured as an artist, painting-and socializing with-fashionable society. When he returned to London in 1774, his career as a courtier-artist in the tradition of William Hogarth was cemented. His work, Titian-like in its scrum of brushwork, was notable for its technical virtuosity, somehow resolving from mottled skeins of color close up into precise, naturalist shapes and hues at a distance. Over the years, as this catalogue attests by its mere existence, he has remained a bedrock of British realism, his excellent society portraits (particularly his women in shiny dresses) and park-like forest scenes still beguiling to the modern eye. Less successful are his images of peasant life, however, which betray a deep unfamiliarity with those outside his social caste, and often compensate by blending them into the landscape as a kind of fleshy rock or tree. The accompanying text, although printed too small and thin, provides ample if somewhat dry information on the artist and his oeuvre, with close readings of his wide-ranging pictures and social life. This handsome, well-illustrated catalogue will maintain Gainsborough's reputation admirably well until his next revival rolls around. 254 illustrations, 195 plates in color. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Book Description
Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) was one of the masters of 18th-century art. This stunning book, published to accompany a major international exhibition, covering the artist's entire career, reveals the sheer range, quality, and originality of Gainsborough's work, from his engagingly naturalistic landscapes and touching images of children to his sophisticated and glamorous society portraits. In their revealing essay, Michael Rosenthal and Martin Myrone explore Gainsborough's dynamic involvement with the social world of his day, while other essays explore his subtle approach to the lucrative world of fashionable portraiture and the often pointed social commentary behind his seductive landscapes. This volume provides new and refreshing insights into Gainsborough as an artist who succeeded in creating an experimental and modern art for his own time, and whose works remain vital and rewarding today.

About the Author
Michael Rosenthal is a leading expert on British social and cultural history and has written several books on 18th-century art. Martin Myrone is a curator at Tate Britain specializing in 18th- and 19th-century British art.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) was one of the masters of eighteenth-century art. This book, published to accompany a major international exhibition covering the artist's entire career, reveals the sheer range, quality, and originality of Gainsborough's work from his engagingly naturalistic landscapes and touching images of children to his sophisticated and glamorous society portraits." "In their essay, Michael Rosenthal and Martin Myrone explore his dynamic involvement with the social world of his day, as he endeavored to forge an art that engaged meaningfully with contemporary life. A second essay examines the development of Gainsborough's technique and working methods, from his early works and life in Sudbury, Suffolk, to the grand studio and gallery at Schomberg House, London, where he spent his final years." The astonishing range of works illustrated here fully demonstrates the variety and brilliance of Gainsborough's art. The paintings he chose for display in London's newly emerging exhibition venues are grouped together, providing a valuable insight into how he wanted his career and art to be understood. Also explored are his precocious early works, his subtle approach to the lucrative world of fashionable portraiture, the often pointed social commentary behind his seductive landscapes, and the exploratory nature of the last works.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Eighteenth-century portraitist and landscape artist Thomas Gainsborough's most recent retrospective reaffirms for a new generation his sturdy place in the mainstream of British art history. Born in Sudbury in 1727, Gainsborough went to London to study (first as a silversmith), where he ran with the smart set but struggled to sell work. Commissions grew when he moved to Ipswich, but with money still a problem, he and his family moved to Bath, where he matured as an artist, painting-and socializing with-fashionable society. When he returned to London in 1774, his career as a courtier-artist in the tradition of William Hogarth was cemented. His work, Titian-like in its scrum of brushwork, was notable for its technical virtuosity, somehow resolving from mottled skeins of color close up into precise, naturalist shapes and hues at a distance. Over the years, as this catalogue attests by its mere existence, he has remained a bedrock of British realism, his excellent society portraits (particularly his women in shiny dresses) and park-like forest scenes still beguiling to the modern eye. Less successful are his images of peasant life, however, which betray a deep unfamiliarity with those outside his social caste, and often compensate by blending them into the landscape as a kind of fleshy rock or tree. The accompanying text, although printed too small and thin, provides ample if somewhat dry information on the artist and his oeuvre, with close readings of his wide-ranging pictures and social life. This handsome, well-illustrated catalogue will maintain Gainsborough's reputation admirably well until his next revival rolls around. 254 illustrations, 195 plates in color. (Mar.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

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