Father and Son, Chewing wasps and 'I wouldn't put it past him'
Monkey and I went to the Citizens and Kings show at the Royal Academy this morning, a very interesting analysis of portrait painting in Europe between 1760 and 1830. It reminded me my old 19th century courses when I was an undergraduate in Paris and I felt both very old and melancholy.
Monkey got very excited when I spotted a mistake on the label (which is repeated in the exhibition's catalogue) of Boilly's Meeting of Artists in Isabey's Studio(exhibited Salon 1798) which claims that 'the battle-painter Horace Vernet is present'. I doubt this is the case, as young Horace was nine years old at the time, and I presume this is a mix up with his father, (also battle-painter) Carle Vernet. Vernet being a bit of my speciality, it was fairly easy to spot. Anyways, Monkey insisted that I contact the R.A to inform them of their mistake, hoping, I suppose, that I'd get praised, interviewed, and then decorated by the Queen for doing so. I think he was rather disappointed when the lady on the phone just thanked me and assured they'd change the label if they could, and hung up without asking my name, address, mensurations and astrological sign.
This also made me think that Vernet's [Horace, that is] 1820 Artist Studio would probably have been a more suitable example, for the section 'The Artist: Image and Self-Image' than Boilly's painting. But that's shop talk.
Apart from this, the exhibition was a very fine one, with quite a few wonderful works. Again I am too lazy to bother trying to write any kind of aborted attempt at a review, so I'd encourage you to have a look at the Guardian's review (how surprising of me?)
While we were admiring the portrait of a lady looking a bit sour (there's a few of these tight-lipped creatures in the exhibition), Monkey taught me a new expression, which I really, really like: chewing wasps.
He then quite accurately added that this could perfectly apply to Rude's bust portrait of the painter Jacques Louis David, who had his upper lip deformed following a fencing accident in his youth.
We should have gone to see the R.A's other current show, The Unknown Monet, but we were starving and posponed that to next time. Never abuse of good things, as the ol' people would say!
On our way back home, Monkey tried to teach me another expression, 'I wouldn't put it past him', but somehow, either his explanation was crap, or I was on thick-mode, but I did not really get it. Nevermind...
Monkey got very excited when I spotted a mistake on the label (which is repeated in the exhibition's catalogue) of Boilly's Meeting of Artists in Isabey's Studio(exhibited Salon 1798) which claims that 'the battle-painter Horace Vernet is present'. I doubt this is the case, as young Horace was nine years old at the time, and I presume this is a mix up with his father, (also battle-painter) Carle Vernet. Vernet being a bit of my speciality, it was fairly easy to spot. Anyways, Monkey insisted that I contact the R.A to inform them of their mistake, hoping, I suppose, that I'd get praised, interviewed, and then decorated by the Queen for doing so. I think he was rather disappointed when the lady on the phone just thanked me and assured they'd change the label if they could, and hung up without asking my name, address, mensurations and astrological sign.
This also made me think that Vernet's [Horace, that is] 1820 Artist Studio would probably have been a more suitable example, for the section 'The Artist: Image and Self-Image' than Boilly's painting. But that's shop talk.
Apart from this, the exhibition was a very fine one, with quite a few wonderful works. Again I am too lazy to bother trying to write any kind of aborted attempt at a review, so I'd encourage you to have a look at the Guardian's review (how surprising of me?)
While we were admiring the portrait of a lady looking a bit sour (there's a few of these tight-lipped creatures in the exhibition), Monkey taught me a new expression, which I really, really like: chewing wasps.
He then quite accurately added that this could perfectly apply to Rude's bust portrait of the painter Jacques Louis David, who had his upper lip deformed following a fencing accident in his youth.
We should have gone to see the R.A's other current show, The Unknown Monet, but we were starving and posponed that to next time. Never abuse of good things, as the ol' people would say!
On our way back home, Monkey tried to teach me another expression, 'I wouldn't put it past him', but somehow, either his explanation was crap, or I was on thick-mode, but I did not really get it. Nevermind...