Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century

This thesis concerns an extreme revolution in taste in European art: the transformation of British attitudes towards the seventeenth-century Bolognese artist Guido Reni (1575–1642). Reni was one of the most collectable and revered artists in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Britain. However, his...

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Main Author: Parrish, Amy
Format: Thesis (University of Nottingham only)
Language:English
English
Published: 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/61323/
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author Parrish, Amy
author_facet Parrish, Amy
author_sort Parrish, Amy
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description This thesis concerns an extreme revolution in taste in European art: the transformation of British attitudes towards the seventeenth-century Bolognese artist Guido Reni (1575–1642). Reni was one of the most collectable and revered artists in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Britain. However, his reputation suffered a dramatic decline and in the nineteenth century he became deeply suspect in the British popular imagination. His works were subject to critical reassessment and he was judged by a new standard of taste. This thesis sets out to understand this rise and fall in Reni’s reputation. It explores how Reni’s reputation was first established in Britain in the seventeenth century. Various aspects of his high status in the eighteenth century are considered, including the collecting of his works by prominent aristocrats and the attraction of copies after his paintings for a wide variety of his individuals. It is argued that the decline in Reni’s reputation occurred much earlier than previously acknowledged and can first be observed in the eighteenth century. It is particularly associated with a series of observations made by various members of the Royal Academy at the turn of the nineteenth century. The continuing deterioration in Reni’s reputation in the nineteenth century is considered and shown to be less clear-cut than is usually assumed. Responses to Reni are shown to reflect wider historical changes in Britain and transformations in the nature of artistic discourse.
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spelling nottingham-613232025-02-28T15:00:27Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/61323/ Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century Parrish, Amy This thesis concerns an extreme revolution in taste in European art: the transformation of British attitudes towards the seventeenth-century Bolognese artist Guido Reni (1575–1642). Reni was one of the most collectable and revered artists in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Britain. However, his reputation suffered a dramatic decline and in the nineteenth century he became deeply suspect in the British popular imagination. His works were subject to critical reassessment and he was judged by a new standard of taste. This thesis sets out to understand this rise and fall in Reni’s reputation. It explores how Reni’s reputation was first established in Britain in the seventeenth century. Various aspects of his high status in the eighteenth century are considered, including the collecting of his works by prominent aristocrats and the attraction of copies after his paintings for a wide variety of his individuals. It is argued that the decline in Reni’s reputation occurred much earlier than previously acknowledged and can first be observed in the eighteenth century. It is particularly associated with a series of observations made by various members of the Royal Academy at the turn of the nineteenth century. The continuing deterioration in Reni’s reputation in the nineteenth century is considered and shown to be less clear-cut than is usually assumed. Responses to Reni are shown to reflect wider historical changes in Britain and transformations in the nature of artistic discourse. 2020-12-11 Thesis (University of Nottingham only) NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en arr https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/61323/2/Amy%20Parrish%20-%20Thesis%20%28copyrighted%20material%20removed%29.pdf application/pdf en arr https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/61323/1/Amy%20Parrish%20-%20Thesis.pdf Parrish, Amy (2020) Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century. PhD thesis, University of Nottingham. Guido Reni; European art; British popular imagination; seventeenth century art; Italian art
spellingShingle Guido Reni; European art; British popular imagination; seventeenth century art; Italian art
Parrish, Amy
Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century
title Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century
title_full Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century
title_fullStr Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century
title_full_unstemmed Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century
title_short Fall from grace: the reception of Guido Reni in Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century
title_sort fall from grace: the reception of guido reni in britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century
topic Guido Reni; European art; British popular imagination; seventeenth century art; Italian art
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/61323/