This appears to be the original painting of Richard Westall picture 'A Ghost' which appeared as an engraving by Schiavonetti, published in March 1791 by T. Simpson as A Ghost/L'Apparition - indicating it was for both the French and British markets. The engraving, reversed, is the next blog image.
The engraving of this image in reverse would suggest that the watercolour precedes it, rather than it being a watercolour copy after the engraving. What is interesting is that the subject seems to have been suggested by an engraving of Reynolds' "The Mask", (for more information about this see my comment beneath the next blog image) itself a detail from a much larger composition painted thirteen years earlier. In both instances the engraver is Schiavonetti and the publisher T Simpson, so I would imagine that Westall's watercolour was produced after discussion with the engraver and publisher, as it clearly follows a similar format to the engraving published by them a year earlier.
This appears to be the original painting of Richard Westall picture 'A Ghost' which appeared as an engraving by Schiavonetti, published in March 1791 by T. Simpson as A Ghost/L'Apparition - indicating it was for both the French and British markets. The engraving, reversed, is the next blog image.
ReplyDeleteThe engraving of this image in reverse would suggest that the watercolour precedes it, rather than it being a watercolour copy after the engraving. What is interesting is that the subject seems to have been suggested by an engraving of Reynolds' "The Mask", (for more information about this see my comment beneath the next blog image) itself a detail from a much larger composition painted thirteen years earlier. In both instances the engraver is Schiavonetti and the publisher T Simpson, so I would imagine that Westall's watercolour was produced after discussion with the engraver and publisher, as it clearly follows a similar format to the engraving published by them a year earlier.
ReplyDelete