Krimmel (American, born Germany, 1786–1821) gathered information for his paintings in the field, observing local habits, rituals, and ceremonies in Philadelphia, so even though he took his compositional formats from British models, popular prints made after paintings by the satirical artists William Hogarth and David Wilkie, he keyed his subject matter to his potential audience at the Pennsylvania Academy. In this canvas, a richly detailed parlour, which evokes the burgeoning middle-class consumer culture, provides the setting for the narrative: a group of smartly dressed folks, accompanied by a minstrel, have burst in to celebrate the completion of a quilt before the seamstresses have cleaned up their scraps of fabric and sewing implements or changed into party attire. A critic applauded in 1813: "The subject is good and executed with great judgment, and if Mr. Krimmel only perseveres in the path he has chosen, we are decidedly of opinion that his labours will contribute largely towards giving character to the arts in our country."
No comments:
Post a Comment