An arty outing...

[kazzy_cee]

The National Gallery in London had a couple of free, small exhibitions which are going to finish in March, so I made the decision to jump on the train this morning and go and catch them.

The first exhibition was showcasing Jean-Etienne Liotard's The Lavergne Family Breakfast. He painted two versions, one in pastel on paper in 1754, and another

Comments

[one_raido]

It's amazing when you think about how old these are.

[kazzy_cee]

Isn't it? Sometimes I have to remind myself that they are such fragile things - especially pastels which could so easily be rubbed away.

[pondhopper]

How lovely! I miss going to the National Gallery (and going to London in general) and want so much to get back to London but I don't know when...

Searching for a husband at age 14...how times have changed!

Ah...the Medicis! I am still in awe of all we saw in Florence.

[kazzy_cee]

I am so glad I have a membership to the gallery - although I didn't need it yesterday as the exhibitions were free anyway (I don't think Londoners appreciate that!).

I suppose if you could die at 23, your life would start much earlier!

[dunkelgrafen]

Liotard’s portraits are my favourite of the era. His sitters almost always show a slight smile, which makes them more accessible and relatable.

I had no idea there were two versions of this painting in existence. The wall shadow on the second one is more prominent. It’s been fun spotting the differences. It also shows how painting was slowly moving from highly romanticised to a more realistic one over time, even if it was still within the confines of the style.
Thanks for sharing!

[kazzy_cee]

It was lovely to see the two versions next to each other as they are really closely alike. He apparently traced the pastel version to transfer it to paint on canvas with oil.

[lblanchard]

Lovely exhibitions - thanks for sharing.

I sometimes think that these smaller exhibitions are better than the big blockbusters. They let the viewer home in on the works rather than being overwhelmed by dozens.

[kazzy_cee]

You’re welcome!

I agree sometimes it’s nice to just closely look at fewer examples of the artists work.

[curiouswombat]

I especially like the pictures by Liotard - and like you I have a slight preference for the pastel version of the first one.

She's only 14 here ... she would have been busy on the London social scene in search of a husband.

My mother used to laugh when she saw or heard people saying, 'they don't have a proper childhood these days - they grow up too quickly". She used to point out that, at the age of 14 in 1941, she had left school and was working, and had she been born a century or two earlier she would have been looking towards marriage by 15 or 16.

The idea of childhood going on until the mid/late teens is a very new one.

[kazzy_cee]

I know what you mean - these days young people start their lives quite late compared to even the 1950s and 60s. The short lifespan in the Renaissance period also prompted people to just get on with their lives too I think.