More about The Blue Boy
The Blue Boy was once the “most famous picture in the world.”
Truth be told, Thomas Gainsborough's most recognized painting isn’t that unique. The Blue Boy was greatly inspired by the work of Anthony Van Dyck. Gainsborough even used the same pose Van Dyck used in his painting George Villiers and His Brother Francis. The Blue Boy depicts Jonathan Buttall as a child, though X-rays have revealed the original painting was supposed to be a young man accompanied by a dog. Despite his fancy clothes Jonny wasn’t an aristocrat but the son of an ironmonger, an uncommon subject for portraits. Gainsborough clothed him in satin and lace all the same just to be ironic.
Like all great things, The Blue Boy was created out of spite. Gainsborough’s frenemy Joshua Reynolds, the first president of the Royal Academy, stated, “The masses of light should always be of warm, mellow colours; greys and greens should be used only to support and set these off.” Seeing that this was indeed the typical approach to portraiture, Gainsborough went ahead and painted a portrait that did the exact opposite. The sky-blues were used to color the subject, while earth-toned colors w
Please Follow Art-Facts:
One of the greatest British portrait painters in history preferred to paint landscapes. He despised the upper-class people who sat before him but needed to do his job to support his family.
We can only imagine that he didn’t have the same feeling when painting this fascinating artwork of the Rococo era. It depicts a young boy wearing a remarkable costume.
In this article, you’ll discover some of the most interesting facts about The Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough (), one of the English artist’s most celebrated paintings for several reasons.
1. It was painted while the artist was living in Bath
It took a lot of time before Thomas Gainsborough, a renowned English artist of the Rococo era, started gaining recognition during his career. He moved several times and mainly worked as a portrait painter to support his family.
Despite attracting a local upscale clientele in his native Suffolk, Ipswitch, and Bath, he found the most enjoyment from painting landscapes.
The artist moved to Ipswitch in , a place where his career didn’t take off the way he wanted. This changed when he settled at the Circus in Bath, Somerset.
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Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough (c) was an amazing painting in the 18th century. The oil painting was actually a previous painting but was painted over with the &#;blue boy&#;. What makes this piece so unique is that it is so different from a Renaissance oil painting. There is more focus on the full figure rather then what surrounds the figure. The background is purposely blurry which has never been seen before, which is an interesting painting technique. It&#;s interesting that Gainsborough decided to make the background blurry because he&#;s actually a landscape painter. Most of his work has landscape painted within them, along with formal suitable figures.
Gainsborough had seen sent to London when he was 13 to pursue learning about landscape when he started learning of the French Rococo, which has a major influence on his paintings and the growth of his style. He was specifically known for painting and drawing such detailed landscape variety, it made him quite famous and well known for his love of landscapes. Other painters thought he w
Masterpiece Story: Journey of Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough
Originally titled A Portrait of a Young Gentleman, this iconic painting by Thomas Gainsborough was first presented at the Royal Academy exhibition of Gainsborough&#;s work transfixed admirers and was highly acclaimed for its incredible play on color. It became immensely popular and, by , it was known by its nickname, The Blue Boy. The popularization of this painting has continued through pop culture, including a video game!
Thomas Gainsborough
Thomas Gainsborough was a British landscape painter active in 18th century England. As with many talented artists, Gainsborough showed an early affinity for painting and established his portfolio in the Rococo style. He developed a unique aesthetic that presented a departure from the academic tradition and became a source of inspiration for the artists of Romanticism. Although Gainsborough was greatly renowned for his portraiture, he considered it a means of his livelihood. Landscapes were truly his passion.
The Painting
The Blue Boy is a large painting about 48 inches ( cm) wide and 70 inches ( cm) tall. It is believed that this painting wasn&#;t comm
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