So today I decided to venture out and just complete a couple errands. Now I don’t normally go go go on my weekends. Today seemed special lol. I had extra money to spend since another thing I had planned didnt occur. I could talk about my medications being one of many today that’s new. I could also talk of the one of many trips I’ve taken to the local downtown farmers market! https://yegdtmarket.com/
However I want to talk about one of my many collections. I have become instantly fascinated with The Blue Boy! circa 1770 and artistic dreams captured on this image of what could’ve been a real person or a homage of sorts by Thomas Gainsborough
As I was thrifting I saw him, he captured my soul. I don’t know exactly why. Could’ve been the vintage of the portrait, maybe his deep dangerous eyes, the dusk backdrop or even the all blue satin type jockey suit he wore? What I do know is he belongs with me, and I’ve started a whole new area in my condo designated for him and James Dean. Yes he is the only other male figure I display besides myself in my home!
Here is a history of this iconic piece, do enjoy. Be sure to sign in and send me a message. i do have a contest running for July 15/22 so check out some of my other posts to find out! 😉
One of Gainsborough's best known works, The Blue Boy was long thought to be a portrait of Jonathan Buttall (1752–1805), the son of a wealthy hardware merchant, because of his early ownership of the painting. This identification has never been proven and as Susan Sloman argued in 2013, the likely sitter is Gainsborough's nephew, Gainsborough Dupont (1754–1797).[2] It is a historical costume study as well as a portrait; the youth appears in clothing from the 17th century as the artist's homage to Anthony van Dyck and is very similar to Van Dyck's portraits of young boys, especially his double portrait of brothers George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Lord Francis Villiers.[3] This origination story appealed to the public's perception of the distinctly different personalities of Reynolds and Gainsborough since it set the two artists in opposition. As president of the Royal Academy, Reynolds was a disciplined advocated of history painting who played an active role in curriculum development and delivery, and the presentation of the annual exhibitions. Gainsborough, on the other hand, was a portrait painter and landscapist and remained aloof from any academic functions. Reynolds was knighted in 1769 and wrote art criticism and delivered lectures while Gainsborough never received sovereign recognition and wrote lively correspondence as his written legacy. These and other real and imagined differences between the two artists were exaggerated in subsequent reports about the creation of The Blue Boy. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blueboy
Comments