Grimaldi's Tandem in the Comic Pantomime of the Golden Fish
William Heath ('Paul Pry') British
Publisher Thomas Palser British
Subject Joseph Grimaldi British
Not on view
Grimaldi reshaped clowning in Regency Britain and is shown here wearing the distinctive white makeup that he introduced accentuated by red diamonds (earlier English stage clowns were usually rustic figures with ruddy complexions). The comic actor sits in a wicker tandem cart and is drawn across the stage by dogs in a pantomime scene--Grimaldi's contributions to those popular seasonal productions at Covent Garden and Sadlers Wells had a transformative effect on that genre as well.
Heath was a teenager when he created this image, and Grimaldi's imaginative performances influenced many of his later prints.
