Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford Assignment 3

The Old Man and Death (c 1773)
Oil on canvas
Joseph Wright of Derby
Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford

On Saturday, April 14 I visited the Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford. The museum is easy to get to, (right off 91) and offers a gated parking lot. In order to get permission to photograph in the museum, I had to fill out a form and was given a photography pass. The museum charges to get in so sure to tell the ticket attendant that you are a student and on a project, this saves you $5 dollars off the $10 fee. Once inside I was impressed the vast collection of paintings, furniture, recreated rooms of colonial houses, sculptures, and there is even an Egyptian mummy on display.

As I mentioned in my first post, I am in the process of renovating my house. I am always looking for ideas of unique things to do. I enjoyed looking at the recreation of the colonial era room with a view of the back of a cabinet that showed the workmanship. The furniture on display showed a broad range of examples of American style. There were several grandfather clocks on display and a couple of them had inlay work that really impressed me. I have dabbled in that art and can appreciate the effort put in to the clocks.


As I wandered through the floors I came upon a picture that gained my attention (shown above). The piece was called The Old Man and Death and painted by Joseph Wright in 1773. It shows a skeleton approaching a fearful aged man. It takes place at the footing of an ancient looking building on a swamp or lake. According to the information I found at the website (source 1) listed below, this piece was first shown at the Society of Artists 1n 1774. It has “frequently been cited as an example of the new taste for “Gothick” subjects in the 1770’s”. This represented a shift from “traditional classical and Christian themes of historical paintings” to “new narrative subjects”. This scene is said to be from an 18th century Aesop text called A Feeble Old Man. The story is about a man whop was tired from carrying sticks, wished for death to save him from the chore. When his request was answered and death comes, he is terrified.

According to information found at another website (source 2), Joseph Wright “was an English landscape and portrait painter — he has been acclaimed as "the first professional painter to express the spirit of the industrial revolution.” “He was a frequent contributor to the exhibitions of the Society of Artists, and to those of the Royal Academy, of which he was elected an associate in 1781 and a full member in 1784. He, however, declined the latter honour on account of a slight which he believed that he had received, and severed his official connection with the Academy, though he continued to contribute to the exhibitions from 1783 until 1794.”


What drew me to this painting was the skeleton (shown above). It was an unusual sight in a museum full of portraits, landscapes, and still lifes. It stood out as if it didn’t belong in a painting that was so masterfully painted. Look at the detail in the trees and the water. Wright sucessfully captures the look of terror in the “old man” (see below).


The location Wright chose for the scene also helps to portray mortality. The ruins, remind the viewer that our time here is temporary, they were built by people who apparently haven’t been around for some time. They are abandonedand covered with vegetation (see below).


Although I did not realize it until I did further research, I have been struck by one of Wrights works before, in the National Gallery in London I viewed Wrights work An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump (c1768) (shown below). As soon as I saw it I instantly recognized the painting.

It stuck with me because I liked the use of shadow and darkness in contrast to the bright faces of the subjects.

I saw many other painting I liked. Here are a few:

Two Girls with Oleander, Gustav Klimt (c1890-1892)
Oil on canvas

I like the overall brightness of the piece and the detail shown on the girls faces, flowers, and the background.

Avenue de Clincy, Louis Anquetin (c1887)
oil on paper laid on canvas

I like the contrast between blue and orange here, I also like the subject.

Sunset on the Hills of Jean-de-Paris, Pierre-Etienne-Theodore Rousseau (c1864)
Oil on canvas

I like the use of the color orange used here, the artist has captured a beautiful sunset here.


The Shore at Trouville; Sunset Effect, Gustave Courbet (c1866)
Oil on canvas
Here are many elements I like here. I like the colors used, the subject, and the technique used.




Source 1 : http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0075-4390(196201%2F06)25%3A1%2F2%3C135%3ASOTPBJ%3E2.0.CO%3B2-5
Source 2: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Wright_of_Derby