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The White Monk (Untitled)
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E17 - The White Monk (Untitled)
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The White Monk (Untitled)
Credit Line
The Trustees of the British Museum
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Artist
James Roberts (1725-1799) after Wilson
Title
The White Monk (Untitled)
Date
Published 25 August 1765
Medium
Etching and engraving
Dimensions
344 x 415 mm
Dimensions
13 1/2 x 16 5/16 in.
Details
Links
Collection
The British Museum.
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Accession Number
1872,0511.391
Wilson Online Reference
E17
Description
Landscape with two monks or friars praying before a wayside cross on the rocks in the middle right distance before a lurid sky.In the left foreground two women sit beneath trees, one turning to look at a figure passing on horseback in the centre. A town can be seen across the lake or river, with mountains beyond.
Landscape with two monks or friars praying before a wayside cross on the rocks in the middle right distance before a lurid sky.In the left foreground two women sit beneath trees, one turning to look at a figure passing on horseback in the centre. A town can be seen across the lake or river, with mountains beyond.
Exhibited
Provenance
1872 Purchased from George Love (1804-1883), 81 Bunhill Row, Finsbury, London, as part of a group 428 prints
1872 Purchased from George Love (1804-1883), 81 Bunhill Row, Finsbury, London, as part of a group 428 prints
Signature/inscription
Lettered below image with title, production detail: 'Richd. Wilson pinxt', 'Jas. Roberts Sculpt' and publication line: 'Publish'd according to Act of Parliament by J. Boydell, Engraver in Cheapside, London, Augt. 25. 1765'; numbered 'No. 4' in lower left hand corner
Lettered below image with title, production detail: 'Richd. Wilson pinxt', 'Jas. Roberts Sculpt' and publication line: 'Publish'd according to Act of Parliament by J. Boydell, Engraver in Cheapside, London, Augt. 25. 1765'; numbered 'No. 4' in lower left hand corner
Techniques and materials
Collectors' marks
Verso inscriptions
Mount inscriptions
Labels
Subject
The subject and thence the meaning remain open to multiple interpretations. Solkin memorably explained its attraction as a moral landscape by an emblematic interpretation of the Platonic philosophical concept of <i>concordia discors</i>, or the harmonious union of opposing elements, where 'the chaotic multiplicity of nature has yielded to the ordering hand of art.' (Solkin 1982, p. 66). He saw the inclusion of monks on the promontory as reassurance of a world anchored in divinely ordained harmony and reinforcing the moral certitude and authority of the patrician class who patronised the artist.
The subject and thence the meaning remain open to multiple interpretations. Solkin memorably explained its attraction as a moral landscape by an emblematic interpretation of the Platonic philosophical concept of
concordia discors
, or the harmonious union of opposing elements, where 'the chaotic multiplicity of nature has yielded to the ordering hand of art.' (Solkin 1982, p. 66). He saw the inclusion of monks on the promontory as reassurance of a world anchored in divinely ordained harmony and reinforcing the moral certitude and authority of the patrician class who patronised the artist.
Related Subjects
Related Drawings
Related Prints
E68 Anonymous after Wilson, <i>The White Monk (Stafford Gallery)</i>, The British Museum E70 Samuel Middiman after Wilson,<i>The White Monk (Untitled)</i>, The British Museum E72/22 Thomas Hastings after Wilson, <i>The White Monk</i>, The British Museum
E68 Anonymous after Wilson,
The White Monk (Stafford Gallery)
, The British Museum
E70 Samuel Middiman after Wilson,
The White Monk (Untitled)
, The British Museum
E72/22 Thomas Hastings after Wilson,
The White Monk
, The British Museum
Versions
Related Paintings
P146 Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782), <i>The White Monk - III</i>, Private Collection
P146 Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782),
The White Monk - III
, Private Collection
Related Works by Other Artists
Critical commentary
Previous Cat/Ref Nos
Bibliography
Booth Notes Doc. 7 [?];
Booth Notes Doc. 7 [?];
Link to WG Constable Archive Record
<a href="http://calmview.co.uk/paulmelloncentre/calmview/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=WGC%2f1%2f1%2f138" title="WGC/1/1/138" class="rewritten">WGC/1/1/138</a>
WGC/1/1/138
Location featured in work
More Information
Condition/Conservation
Illustrations of the Work
Updated by Compiler
Work of Art
Prints
Anonymous after Wilson,
The White Monk (Stafford Gallery)
, The British Museum
Samuel Middiman after Wilson,
The White Monk (Untitled)
, The British Museum
Thomas Hastings after Wilson,
The White Monk
, The British Museum
Versions
James Roberts (1725-1799) after Wilson,
The White Monk (Untitled)
, National Museum Wales, Cardiff
Paintings
Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782),
The White Monk - III
, Private Collection
Exhibitions
Biographies
James Roberts (1725-1799), 1725-1799
Documents
Benjamin Booth, Unpublished Notes, Document 7: List of Prints after Wilson's Paintings
Part of a sketchbook
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