Royal Academy Exhibition of 1781

The Ladies Waldegrave by Joshua Reynolds

The Royal Academy Exhibition of 1781 was the thirteenth annual Summer Exhibition of the British Royal Academy of Arts. It was held at Somerset House in London between 30 April and 2 June 1781.[1] It featured submissions from leading artists and architects of the Georgian era.

The President of the Royal Academy Joshua Reynolds submitted fifteen works, by far the largest representation of any artist. His The Death of Dido was on an identical subject to Dido by the Swiss artist Henry Fuseli, and the two were frequently compared.[2] Reynolds' leading rival Thomas Gainsborough sent in several paintings. His submissions included Portrait of Queen Charlotte, a Royal Commission.[3] Benjamin West displayed a neoclassical history painting Paetus and Arria, its whereabouts are now unknown.[4]

The The Public Advertiser noted that Joseph Wright of Derby had displayed several typical examples of his works relying on moonlight and lamplight for a Chiaroscuro effect, but particularly praised his more naturalistic Portrait of Sir Brooke Boothby.[5] Amongst the other works on display was a second version of his earlier success A Philosopher by Lamplight. William Redmore Bigg's A Lady and Her Children Relieving a Cottager was a genre painting.[6] Paul Sandby showed six pictures showing military encampments around the capital during the Gordon Riots of the previous June.[7] Despite being a newly elected member of the Royal Academy, the Anglo-American artist chose to exhibit his large The Death of the Earl of Chatham privately at Spring Gardens in Pall Mall.

See also

References

Bibliography

  • Hamilton, James. Gainsborough: A Portrait. Hachette UK, 2017.
  • Hoock, Holger. Empires of the Imagination: Politics, War, and the Arts in the British World, 1750–1850. Profile Books, 2010.
  • McIntyre, Ian. Joshua Reynolds: The Life and Times of the First President of the Royal Academy. Allen Lane, 2003.
  • Myrone, Martin. Henry Fuseli. Tate Publishing, 2001.
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