Joseph Wright of Derby is well known for his intriguing method used in his “Blacksmiths Shop” painting. He produced five series, pictures of the blacksmith’s shops between 1771 and 1773, were he incorporated a small piece of gold leaf onto a “white under layer of a picture” (David H.). The first version was purchased by Lord Melbourne which is now housed in The Yale Centre for British Art, New Haven, Connecticut. The picture you see here is his second version of a Blacksmith’s Shop. Joseph Wright referred to these pieces as “Night Pieces” “emphasizing their romantic elements” (David H.). Although his methods were unusual they were original “a scientific masterpiece.” His painting depicted three blacksmiths crafting what appeared to be a horse shoe during the night.
Wright a pupil and protégé of Sir Joshua; gained a reputation within a seven year period as a local artist in London without influential patrons. He was interested in the effects of dramatic light (from candles, lamps, and the reflection of the moon). His interests were along the same lines of; “the new scientific philosophical [ideals] of industrial developments in the Midlands” (David H.). His Blacksmith painting was thought to have been created in the summer or autumn of 1770. The method used for Joseph Wright’s Blacksmith’s Shop, was the covering of a narrow strip of metal, in which a thick (opaque) layer of Naples yellow was applied. This created the luminous effect, which was the compositions focal point. The method was not revealed until two centuries later where it underwent a technical examination.
The most intriguing thing to me about this painting aside from the luminous lighting effects; are those things the light emphasizes; the two blacksmiths facing the observer standing in front of the bright metal are highlighted thoroughly. The blacksmith with his back toward the viewer is highlighted as well. But in a more darken light, so the viewer gets a sense of transition, the contrast from extreme bright light to dim low lighting, gradually receding into an opaque darkness. The building itself drives a very dramatic effect. In fact it complements the focal point of the painting; illustrating the remaining light that’s not being hovered over, as reflecting onto the walls softly highlighting small details of the surrounding area. The observer then gets a small, minute view of the buildings architectural design.
Of course the additional lighting of the outside sky depicts the moon shielded behind a cluster of dark clouds. The painting itself aside from the three blacksmiths, indicate several more characters lurking in the dark. One version is of a teen boy covering his face as he turns away from the bright metal. The second, which is the one you see here, is of a young girl mimicking the same action in front of people assumed to be her parents appearing next to her. In addition there is a young boy peeping between the two adults. A woman on the left closes to the blacksmiths mending the strip of metal, and man on the right sitting with a hood covering his face. The woman’s body is highlighted by the glowing strip of metal while the man presence recedes into the darkness.
Joseph Wright's Early Subject Pictures
Benedict Nicolson
The Burlington Magazine , Vol. 96, No. 612 (Mar., 1954), pp. 72+74-80
Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/871444
Joseph Wright of Derby and the Sublime Art of Labor
David H. Solkin
Representations , Vol. 83, No. 1 (Summer 2003), pp. 167-194
Article DOI: 10.1525/rep.2003.83.1.167
Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/rep.2003.83.1.167
I like that you mentioned the "romantic aspects" of a nighttime scene. In lecture I discussed Joseph Wright of Derby in relation to the Enlightenment (which sometimes can be seen in opposition to Romanticism, because of the emphasis on reason instead of emotion). However, it is important to observe how there are romantic aspects in Joseph Wright of Derby's work.
ReplyDelete-Prof. Bowen