Sir Joshua Reynolds and the Grand Manner Artwork

Sir Joshua Reynolds was an artist during the Enlightenment era. During this time, a new style of art was created, partially by Reynolds, called “the Grand Manner”. This style was defined by looking to the past Classical and Renaissance models and idealize the nature of the artwork instead of copying the art. In his attempt to perfect the paintings, Reynolds creates what we would interpret as oddities in the artwork. Each piece of art is characterized by having at least one person and an outdoor setting. The former description appears to be normal, but what makes Reynolds’ paintings so unique is the character(s) in the piece will be in a setting that is out of context. The paintings vary on whether the character(s) are standing or sitting, but what is constant is the fact that each person appears to be out of context. More often than not, the person(s) would be better placed in the context of a house. The thing to keep in mind though is that Reynolds’ artwork is an idealization of nature. For that reason it is easier to see that in Reynolds’ mind, the way he is portraying nature in his art is what nature looks like when perfect.

Miss Price, Joshua Reynolds, Date: 1769 – 1770, Medium: oil, canvas, Hatfield House, Herfordshire, UK.

·      The young Miss Price is in the great outdoors, but she appears to be out of place. She does not seem to be involved with her surroundings at all as she is just standing awkwardly frontal. The sheep in the background are just looking at Miss Price and her uncomfortableness. The painting is stagnant, quiet, peaceful, and constant, which is in accordance with Sir Joshua Reynolds’ goal of idealizing nature as opposed to the typical chaos of nature that we experience daily.

Mrs. Susanna Hoare and Child, Joshua Reynolds, Date: 1763 – 1764, Medium: oil, canvas, Wallace Collection, London, UK.

·         Imagine the painting of Mrs. Susanna Hoare and Child without the background. What would you imagine the background would be with just the information given with Mrs. Susanna Hoare and her child? Something like a bedroom with toys on the ground and a rocking chair and Mrs. Hoare is rocking her child to sleep. Reynolds always seems to surprise with nature surrounding the central focus of the painting and Mrs. Hoare and her child seem to be at quite ease with where they are. The scene is what Reynolds’ is idealizing because it never happens in real life.

Miss Bowles, Joshua Reynolds, Date: 1775, Medium: oil, canvas, Wallace Collection, London, UK.

·         Miss Bowles is quite closely related to the painting titled Miss Price. Like Miss Price, Miss Bowles is a young girl in the middle of the outdoors, the forest to be specific. Also similarly to Miss Price, Miss Bowles and her dog be more at home in the context of a house, but in Reynolds’ idealized nature the painted scene is perfectly normal and is complimented with a strong triangular composition giving it a firm consistent structure.

Lady Delm and her Children, Joshua Reynolds, Date: 1777 – 1780, Medium: oil, canvas, The National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, USA.

·         The painting of Lady Delm and her Children has similar concepts to Mrs. Susanna Hoare and Child. Lady Delm and her children are idealized in nature and seem to be quite comfortable with where they are. Reynolds, like most other paintings, has a strong triangular composition making the artwork give off an eternal air. This is an exemplification of Reynolds perfected world where home can be anywhere in nature. This idea spawns from the Enlightenment era, which Sir Joshua Reynolds was a big part of.

Lady Mary Leslie, Joshua Reynolds, Date: 1764, Medium: oil, canvas, Georgiana, Countess Spencer, and Her Daughter, Joshua Reynolds, Date: 1759 – 1761, Medium: oil, canvas, The Iveagh Bequest, Kenwood, UK.

     Reynolds’ artwork of Lady Mary Leslie has a little bit of a different tone to it than most of the other paintings. Whereas the other characters in other paintings of Reynolds are solely present in nature, Lady May Leslie is interacting with nature. This is further down the stream of Reynolds’ idealized world. It shows a progression from the other paintings while still holding the constant triangle shape, which negates any potential chaos and promotes evenness.

Caroline, Duchess of Marlborough, Joshua Reynolds, Date: 1759 – 1762, Medium: oil, canvas, Trustees of the Bedford Estates at Woburn Abbey, UK.

·         Caroline, Duchess of Marlborough, is an example of Reynolds moving away from child portraits and practicing his utopian ideas with women. Even though the age of the characters has changed, other things remain the same such as the calming triangular composition and displacement of the character. Nature is weaved through the whole painting not being just limited to the background landscape but in addition having the dog in Caroline’s lap and the flower on the front of her dress.

Thomas and Martha Neate, with Tutor, Joshua Reynolds, Date: 1748, Medium: oil, canvas, 1986.264.5

·         The three characters in this painting all seem out of place. It would be better placed inside of a library with many books and desks. Instead, Thomas and Martha Neate and their tutor are out and among nature with not only the outdoors, but with the unusual sheep, the flowers, and big tree behind them. The merging with nature is just what Reynolds ideal world has, and to make the picture seem eternal, he gives it a strong triangular shape just like his other artwork in the hope of his idea lasting forever.