Showbox
Exhibition Box
ca. 1781-1782 (designed)
ca. 1781-1782 (designed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Thomas Gainsborough built a successful career as a painter of fashionable portraits, but he preferred to paint landscapes. In the 1780s he made a series of landscapes, in oil on glass, to be viewed in this specially constructed 'showbox'. Gainsborough was probably inspired by the example of contemporary glass paintings and the 'Eidophusikon', a miniature theatre for the display of pictures invented by the painter Philippe-Jacques de Loutherbourg in 1781. He used these transparencies, whose subjects were mainly drawn from the landscape near his native Sudbury, as an aid for planning larger compositions and for exploring different effects of lighting.
A contemporary witness described the working of the showbox thus: 'The machine consists of a number of glass planes, which are moveable, and were painted by himself [Gainsborough], of various subjects, chiefly landscapes. They are lighted by candles at the back, and are viewered through a magnifying lens, by which means the effect produced is truly captivating, especially the moonlight pieces, which exhibit the most perfect resemblance of nature.'
A contemporary witness described the working of the showbox thus: 'The machine consists of a number of glass planes, which are moveable, and were painted by himself [Gainsborough], of various subjects, chiefly landscapes. They are lighted by candles at the back, and are viewered through a magnifying lens, by which means the effect produced is truly captivating, especially the moonlight pieces, which exhibit the most perfect resemblance of nature.'
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 5 parts.
|
| Title | Showbox (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Wood (oak), with glass lens and brass fittings |
| Brief description | Original lens for Exhibition Box made by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788). Spring-loaded candle holder for Exhibition Box to display twelve landscapes painted in oil on glass by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788). Spring-loaded candle holder for Exhibition Box to display twelve landscapes painted in oil on glass by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788). Spring-loaded candle holder for Exhibition Box to display twelve landscapes painted in oil on glass by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788). Exhibition Box to display twelve landscapes painted in oil on glass by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) |
| Physical description | A hollow wooden (oak) exhibition box mounted on a wood base. The front of the box contains a round lens through which the viewer may see a glass transparency positioned inside an interior slot. The box opens at the top and back and contains further slots for storing transparencies. |
| Dimensions | See Departmental File for measurements of the box. |
| Credit line | Bequeathed by Ernest E. Cook through Art Fund |
| Object history | Gainsborough built a successful career as a fashionable portraitist, but he preferred to paint landscapes. In the 1780s he made a series of landscapes, in oil on glass, to be viewed in a specially constructed 'showbox.' It was described thus: 'The machine consists of a number of glass planes, which are moveable, and were painted by himself [Gainsborough], of various subject, chiefly landscapes. They are lighted by candles at the back, and are viewed through a magnifying lens, by which means the effect produced is truly captivating, especially the moonlight pieces, which exhibit the most perfect resemblance of nature.' Gainsborough used these transparencies as a compositional aid for larger pictures, as well as for exploring different lighting effects. |
| Historical context | Gainsborough's showbox was probably inspired by contemporary glass paintings and the 'Eidophusikon', a miniature theatre for the display of pictures, invented by Philippe Jacques de Loutherbourg in 1781. |
| Production | The box was designed by Thomas Gainsborough specifically to view his oil-on-glass transparencies. The maker, however, remains unknown. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Association | |
| Summary | Thomas Gainsborough built a successful career as a painter of fashionable portraits, but he preferred to paint landscapes. In the 1780s he made a series of landscapes, in oil on glass, to be viewed in this specially constructed 'showbox'. Gainsborough was probably inspired by the example of contemporary glass paintings and the 'Eidophusikon', a miniature theatre for the display of pictures invented by the painter Philippe-Jacques de Loutherbourg in 1781. He used these transparencies, whose subjects were mainly drawn from the landscape near his native Sudbury, as an aid for planning larger compositions and for exploring different effects of lighting. A contemporary witness described the working of the showbox thus: 'The machine consists of a number of glass planes, which are moveable, and were painted by himself [Gainsborough], of various subjects, chiefly landscapes. They are lighted by candles at the back, and are viewered through a magnifying lens, by which means the effect produced is truly captivating, especially the moonlight pieces, which exhibit the most perfect resemblance of nature.' |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | P.44:1 to 4-1955 |
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| Record created | November 3, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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