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January 20-April 21 |
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JAMES
MacARDELL, Irish, 1728-1765;
after ARTHUR POND, English, 1701-1758
David Garrick, Esq.
Burton Emmett Collection, 58.1.563
David
Garrick was the best-known British actor of the eighteenth century because
of his ability to exude grace and self-confidence on stage. Born to
a respectable army officer, he received a good education and aspired
to be a man of society. His desire for upward mobility perhaps explains
his concern with making his visage known to audiences through the dissemination
of images like this mezzotint. He was so popular after his debut in
1741 that artists portrayed him more often than King George III.
Artists
depicted Garrick in a variety of guises, but in this portrait he is
shown as himself. In comparison to the French actress Lecouvreur,
shown in a tragic role in the engraving by Drevet, Garrick appears staid
and confident as he gazes directly at the viewer. He is dressed elegantly
with a perfectly powdered wig that highlights his formal persona. The
portrait resembles some included in Lavater’s Essai sur la Physiognomonie,
in which the author uses a sitter’s external characteristics to intuit
his interior character. In this portrait, the actor is immortalized
as a gentleman.
Cathy Keller-Brown and Cathy Dorin