Exhibition Room, Somerset House
Original title: Exhibition Room, Somerset House
kurzbeschreibung
Thomas Rowlandson's hand-colored etching and aquatint of 1808 opens a view onto the exhibition room at Somerset House. At 27.6 × 33.7 cm, the print records a historic art exhibition crowded with visitors dressed in the fashion of the day.
Description
Framed paintings hang densely on both sides of the room, stacked nearly to the decorated ceiling. Visitors gather in groups, talk among themselves, or turn toward the works; their garments follow early nineteenth-century fashion. A window at the rear admits daylight that falls evenly across the scene. Grays, blues, and beiges set the muted palette, lending the picture its period atmosphere. The layout is symmetrical, so that people and paintings on either wall answer one another.
Context
Since 1780, Somerset House in London had housed the Royal Academy of Arts, which held its annual exhibitions there. Rowlandson, known for satirical and social observation, contributed this view to The Microcosm of London (1808–1810), a series published together with Augustus Charles Pugin. The subject captures the Academy's exhibition activity, a social occasion for the art public of the time. The date of January 1, 1808 refers to the print's publication.
Impact
A calm, contemplative mood emanates from the scene, strengthened by the symmetrical arrangement and subdued colors. The viewer gains a lively glimpse into nineteenth-century art viewing, yet the image is not exaggerated into satire.
Technique
Etching and aquatint, hand-colored, produce a detailed rendering of architecture and figures: the aquatint supplies fine gradations of tone, the hand coloring adds restrained accents of color, and the etched line provides precise drawing. The print was pulled on paper; the plate measures 23.2 × 28.6 cm and is mounted on a larger sheet.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)