Talk on Joshua Reynolds by Alex Gent Freemason's Hall, 60 Great Queen Street, London WC2B 5AZ
Wednesday 6th November, 6pm - 8.30pm The process of copying paintings is an acknowledged practice in Joshua Reynolds's studio. In the introduction to 'Sir Joshua Reynolds: a complete catalogue of his paintings', David Mannings proposes that the terms 'replica' or 'studio replica' are better used in relation to these multiples, reserving the term copy for paintings made after Reynolds's lifetime. Reynolds's students and assistants, as well as copyists working outside the studio, often made replicas. However, the artist also painted replicas himself, and there is even anecdotal evidence that he sometimes worked simultaneously on more than one version of the same subject. In this talk Alex will examine the production of multiple versions of the same composition by Reynolds and his workshop through the comparative technical examination of his paintings, including X-radiography, infrared reflectography and paint analysis. This will draw on the investigations carried out during her doctoral research at the Courtauld, which focused on Reynolds's subject paintings, such as The Fortune Teller and Venus Chiding Cupid for Learning to Cast Accounts. The talk will consider the technique and materials used to execute the paintings; the relationship between the different versions; the status of each painting in relation to the categories of 'first version', 'replica' or 'studio replica'; and what the comparative technical analysis of his paintings has revealed about Reynolds's studio practice. Biography Alexandra Gent is a paintings conservator at the National Portrait Gallery in London. Prior to joining the Portrait Gallery in 2018 she worked for English Heritage, Tate, National Galleries of Scotland and the Wallace Collection. At the Wallace Collection she was paintings conservator for the Reynolds Research Project and co-curated the exhibition 'Joshua Reynolds, Experiments in Paint'. She recently was awarded a doctorate from the Courtauld Institute of Art, writing her thesis on Repetition and Replication in Joshua Reynolds's Subject Pictures. She has produced a number of publications on Reynolds's painting technique, including an essay in the exhibition catalogue for 'Joshua Reynolds, Experiments in Paint', and was co-author of volume 35 of the National Gallery Technical Bulletin, devoted to Reynolds's paintings at the National Gallery and the Wallace Collection. She is currently co-editor of The Picture Restorer. For more information and to buy tickets please go to Eventbrite <https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/alex-gent-will-give-a-talk-for-icon-on-sir-joshua-reynolds-tickets-75309774563?utm_campaign=new_event_email&utm_medium=email&utm_source=eb_email&utm_term=viewmyevent_button&dm_i=6S6,6J0BC,PLZPXT,PXN6R,1> ------------------------------ Donatella Banti Painting Conservator/Chemist London ------------------------------ Reply to Sender : https://community.culturalheritage.org/eGroups/PostReply/?GroupId=481&SenderKey=a9440246-f251-4975-b87f-e5a5b5226a9d&MID=9158&MDATE=756%253e46546%253c&UserKey=d16eaa87-0f69-494b-9f2f-303dbc1222e1&sKey=fab9aa4f27a04c5d876e Reply to Discussion : https://community.culturalheritage.org/eGroups/PostReply/?GroupId=481&MID=9158&MDATE=756%253e46546%253c&UserKey=d16eaa87-0f69-494b-9f2f-303dbc1222e1&sKey=fab9aa4f27a04c5d876e You are subscribed to "Global Conservation Forum (ConsDistList)" as [email protected]. To change your subscriptions, go to http://community.culturalheritage.org/preferences?section=Subscriptions&MDATE=756%253e46546%253c&UserKey=d16eaa87-0f69-494b-9f2f-303dbc1222e1&sKey=fab9aa4f27a04c5d876e. To unsubscribe from this community discussion, go to http://community.culturalheritage.org/HigherLogic/eGroups/Unsubscribe.aspx?UserKey=d16eaa87-0f69-494b-9f2f-303dbc1222e1&sKey=fab9aa4f27a04c5d876e&GroupKey=757a8f16-505f-4323-8e74-e376757aa9f7.
