A Connoisseur and Tired Boy
painted landscape, with the yawns of a boy who must support the heavy frame. The work belongs to a type of night-piece popular in Europe since the seventeenth century in Europe, where artists depicted forms dramatically lit by a single, often hidden, light source. The Met's collection also includes a smaller anonymous version of this mezzotint published in 1776 (62.659.4).
The artist Henry Morland published a description of his related painting in 1775: "An Italian Connoisseur and tired boy. The connoisseur is an admirer of no pictures but Italian, therefore his taste is greatly affronted on being shown a Dutch picture; nevertheless his attention is engaged by some effect he sees in the landscape - has forgotten the boy, who is tired with holding the picture in a heavy frame, which he is just ready to drop."
The artist Henry Morland published a description of his related painting in 1775: "An Italian Connoisseur and tired boy. The connoisseur is an admirer of no pictures but Italian, therefore his taste is greatly affronted on being shown a Dutch picture; nevertheless his attention is engaged by some effect he sees in the landscape - has forgotten the boy, who is tired with holding the picture in a heavy frame, which he is just ready to drop."
Artwork Details
- Title: A Connoisseur and Tired Boy
- Engraver: Philip Dawe (British, ca. 1745–1809?)
- Artist: After Henry Robert Morland (British, London (?) 1716?–1797 London)
- Publisher: Robert Sayer (British, Sunderland 1725–1794 Bath)
- Date: November 22, 1773
- Medium: Mezzotint
- Dimensions: Plate: 19 1/2 × 13 11/16 in. (49.6 × 34.8 cm)
Sheet: 26 1/2 in. × 19 in. (67.3 × 48.2 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Gift of J. R. Watkins, 1942
- Object Number: 42.16.7
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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