Ralph Earl painted many of the most enduring images of American people and places during the last quarter of the 18th century, yet he has remained one of the least known American painters. This book - the first full-scale investigation of Earl's life and work - gives details of his colourful career, examines his unique patterns of patronage, explores why his style and technique underwent many changes, discusses how the values of New England society influenced his art, and provides commentaries on his works and those of his followers. Elizabeth Kornhauser related Earl's adventures as an artist during turbulent times: his early years painting prominent New Haven patriots on the eve of the Revolution, his escape to England during the war, his three years in a New York City debtors' prison, and his return to the Connecticut countryside, where he spent a decade painting innovative portraits that featured "true" likenesses of his middle-class clientele - with their newly acquired land, homes and furnishings. Esays by Richard L. Bushman, Stephen H. Kornhauser and Aileen Ribeiro shed additional light on society in late 18th century Connecticut, on Earl's working methods and materials, and on the way that the costumes of Earl's sitters substantiate the broad basis of his patronage.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
Portraitist and landscape painter Earle (1751-1801) is known for his seemingly striaghtforward, "very American" depictions on canvas. The authors offer a more complex picture. A Loyalist sympathizer born in Massachusetts, Earle fled to England during the Revolution and there honed his artistic talents. He returned to New York, was thrown into jail for debt, and escaped by painting portraits of the city's elite. He then traveled to Connecticut. Sensitive to the desires and conventions of this conservative rural society, he pleased sitters while also creating compelling portraits. The text focuses on the artist's career and output, a catalog of individual works, scientific analysis of the techniques and materials Earle employed, and a consideration of the social networks, aspirations, and clothing styles of the sitters. Faced with a dearth of personal papers, Kornhauser has used related sources ingeniously to flesh out the first full-length biography of this complicated and elusive man. The richly illustrated volume accompanies a traveling exhibition. Highly recommended for related collections.
- Kathleen Eagen Johnson, Historic Hudson Val ley, Tarrytown, N.Y.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
- Kathleen Eagen Johnson, Historic Hudson Val ley, Tarrytown, N.Y.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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