Lions and Lionesses
Watercolour
ca. 1810 (painted)
ca. 1810 (painted)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
The purpose behind this rather amateurish watercolour is not now known, except that it was a copy of a famous work that many people had seen. It may have been some kind of souvenir.
People
Mary Linwood's copies of old master paintings in crewel wool (named from the crewel or worsted wool used), in which the brush strokes were rendered by stitches, achieved great fame from the time of her first London exhibition in 1787. On one occasion her copy of a painting by the Italian artist Salvator Rosa (1615-1673) was sold for more than the original. Her exhibition in Leicester Square, London, was the first art show to be illuminated by gaslight. The first commissioned work of the landscape artist John Constable (1776-1837) was to paint the background details in one of her works. Linwood's portrait of Napoleon, said to have been done from life, was bequeathed to the V&A at the same time as this picture.
Subjects Depicted
One of the most striking exhibits in Mary Linwood's Gallery was her large crewel-work picture based on a painting by George Stubbs (1724-1806), known variously as Lions and Lionesses or The Cave of Lions. Stubbs, the animal painter, was famous for his pictures of horses and dogs. In the 1770s he began to produce a number of images of leopards, lions and lionesses, usually seen in or at the mouths of caves. He depicted the big cats with great naturalism, but often set them in a particular English landscape, at Creswell, near Welbeck Abbey, in Nottinghamshire. The Creswell Crags are a spectacular rock formation with a system of caves.
The purpose behind this rather amateurish watercolour is not now known, except that it was a copy of a famous work that many people had seen. It may have been some kind of souvenir.
People
Mary Linwood's copies of old master paintings in crewel wool (named from the crewel or worsted wool used), in which the brush strokes were rendered by stitches, achieved great fame from the time of her first London exhibition in 1787. On one occasion her copy of a painting by the Italian artist Salvator Rosa (1615-1673) was sold for more than the original. Her exhibition in Leicester Square, London, was the first art show to be illuminated by gaslight. The first commissioned work of the landscape artist John Constable (1776-1837) was to paint the background details in one of her works. Linwood's portrait of Napoleon, said to have been done from life, was bequeathed to the V&A at the same time as this picture.
Subjects Depicted
One of the most striking exhibits in Mary Linwood's Gallery was her large crewel-work picture based on a painting by George Stubbs (1724-1806), known variously as Lions and Lionesses or The Cave of Lions. Stubbs, the animal painter, was famous for his pictures of horses and dogs. In the 1770s he began to produce a number of images of leopards, lions and lionesses, usually seen in or at the mouths of caves. He depicted the big cats with great naturalism, but often set them in a particular English landscape, at Creswell, near Welbeck Abbey, in Nottinghamshire. The Creswell Crags are a spectacular rock formation with a system of caves.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Titles |
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| Materials and techniques | Watercolour on paper |
| Brief description | Lions and lionesses |
| Physical description | Watercolour drawing |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label | British Galleries:
Lions and Lionesses, by George Stubbs (1724-1806), shown here in a watercolour copy, was one of Mary Linwood's most popular attractions. The embroidery was displayed in a room known as 'The Cave of Lions'. The novelist William Makepeace Thackeray observed that the gallery was a favourite place for ladies to take their grandchildren.(27/03/2003) |
| Object history | There is another watercolour in the same frame, showing the interior of Mary Linwood's Needlwork Gallery. On the back of the frame is marked "These two water colour drawings represent views of the interior of the late Miss Linwood's gallery of needlework, Leicester Square London the artist is unknown. They were executed about the year 1810 (or earlier) and were the originals from which the illustrations of the catalogue were engraved. They represent the principal gallery and the "Cave of Lions" which was in needlework. These works were similar to what is called "Crewel Work" but much finer and quite artistic and closely imitated painting. There is one specimen in the South Kensington Museum in the Tapestry Department being a copy of a portrait of the great Napoleon as first consul. There is also a portrait of Miss Linwood in oil by Hopper in the same museum. Miss Linwood's gallery was sold and dispensed soon after her death which occurred on the 11th March 1845 in the 90th year of her age." |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Object Type The purpose behind this rather amateurish watercolour is not now known, except that it was a copy of a famous work that many people had seen. It may have been some kind of souvenir. People Mary Linwood's copies of old master paintings in crewel wool (named from the crewel or worsted wool used), in which the brush strokes were rendered by stitches, achieved great fame from the time of her first London exhibition in 1787. On one occasion her copy of a painting by the Italian artist Salvator Rosa (1615-1673) was sold for more than the original. Her exhibition in Leicester Square, London, was the first art show to be illuminated by gaslight. The first commissioned work of the landscape artist John Constable (1776-1837) was to paint the background details in one of her works. Linwood's portrait of Napoleon, said to have been done from life, was bequeathed to the V&A at the same time as this picture. Subjects Depicted One of the most striking exhibits in Mary Linwood's Gallery was her large crewel-work picture based on a painting by George Stubbs (1724-1806), known variously as Lions and Lionesses or The Cave of Lions. Stubbs, the animal painter, was famous for his pictures of horses and dogs. In the 1770s he began to produce a number of images of leopards, lions and lionesses, usually seen in or at the mouths of caves. He depicted the big cats with great naturalism, but often set them in a particular English landscape, at Creswell, near Welbeck Abbey, in Nottinghamshire. The Creswell Crags are a spectacular rock formation with a system of caves. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | P.6A-1985 |
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| Record created | May 20, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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