Full Description
English painter William Etty (1787-1849) believed women were "God's most glorious work." His determination to present that glorious work in its finest light led to criticism in his day for his choice of nudes as subjects. Today, Etty deserves recognition for his place in the history of English art.
The life and work of William Etty are thoroughly explored and generously illustrated in this biography. Chapters detail his family background and childhood, his home in York, his life in London and at the Royal Academy of Arts, and his struggles to make a living. His studies in Italy and France and his career as a painter are explored as are his work with the York School of Design in his final decade, his place in the fine arts market and his emulators. An appendix examines Etty's relationship with his niece Betsy, his caretaker, housekeeper and assistant.
Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
List of Illustrations xiii
Foreword by Tom Etty
Preface
Introduction
CHAPTER
The Etty family, Etty's birth and early years
The shape of things to come
Education
CHAPTER
"One of the fairest of England's cities"
"Servitude and slavery"
CHAPTER THREE
Life in London
A second apprenticeship
A rewarding pupilage
CHAPTER FOUR
Unsettled and solitary
Finding his way
Slow beginnings and widening horizons
Death of his father
Success at home
CHAPTER FIVE
The Grand Tour—A second attempt
"The spell is broken"
Success in Venice
"Fever of heart"
A confession?
CHAPTER
Further successes and material improvements
"An honor conferred"
Further recognition—Meeting with Delacroix
A troublesome patron
Revisiting York
"We must keep the foreigners from fooling us!"
CHAPTER SEVEN
"I have triumphed!"
A familiar allegory reworked
A fair exchange?
His mother's death
"The Vandals strike again"
Between pages 152 and 153 are 16 color plates containing 28 illustrations
CHAPTER EIGHT
"An irreparable loss"
Mixed reactions
A change of Academic patronage
Unpleasant experiences in France
"An affair of the Heart"
Etty and politics—Reactions to reform
CHAPTER NINE
A tour of the north
"A general allegory of Human Life"
Defender of antiquities
The letters of Ridolfi
A second Ridolfi
A variety of portraits
CHAPTER
"The War of the Walls"
"Some great moral on the heart"
A missed opportunity
Illness and convalescence
An exhibition in York
A strange appointment
More advice from Ridolfi Minor
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Divergent opinions
"Beauty, action, masculine vigour"
The National Gallery
"A nasty little pokey hole"
An important appointment—The Schools of Design
CHAPTER TWELVE
A change of monarch, a change of style
A childlike humor
Critical appreciations
Painting the Lady Mayoress
Etty's painting methods
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
"I am not a Protestant" ... "I am not a Catholic"
"Premiums for Crime"
Etty and money
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
A qualified tribute from one artist to another
Another important appointment—The National Gallery
"Nature supreme and over all"
Summer excursions
A prestigious appointment—The Houses of Parliament
A royal command
"Let Brotherly Love Continue"
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
"The Judith of modern times"
York Minster again
Planning for retirement
"The new Maecenas"
Distinguished portraits
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Etty and his models
"Never to marry!"
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The York School of Design
Failing powers
Excursions and alarums
A reluctant departure
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Who bought Etty's paintings?
CHAPTER NINETEEN
"A piece of egotism"
A curious intervention
Recognition by fellow artists
Praise from a famous poet
Increasing ill-health and other worries
A final imprudence
CHAPTER TWENTY
Final wishes unfulfilled
"A Sordid Topic"
A hurried sale
Posthumous appreciations
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Etty's successors
Etty in the Twentieth Century
Summation
Appendix. Betsy
Chapter Notes
Abbreviations and Full References
The Notes
Bibliography
Index
