The Painter's Daughters Chasing a Butterfly
| The Painter's Daughters Chasing a Butterfly | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Thomas Gainsborough |
| Year | 1756 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 113.5 cm × 105 cm (44.7 in × 41 in) |
| Location | |
The Painter's Daughters Chasing a Butterfly is an oil on canvas painting by Thomas Gainsborough, from 1756. It is held in the National Gallery, in London.[1]
Analysis
[edit]The painting depicts the artists daughters, Mary ("Molly", 31 January 1750 - 2 July 1826)[2] and Margaret ("Peggy", 19 August 1751 - 18 December 1820)[3] Gainsborough, engaging in the titular activity.
The two girls are depicted during a butterfly hunt, standing hand in hand in a forest. The composition shows Margaret, the younger sister, extending her right arm towards a small white butterfly that has landed on a thistle. In the other half of the painting, on the right, her sister Mary holds the apron of her dress closed over her shoulder, like a makeshift net.
The younger daughter reaching to grab the butterfly represents the fragility of life while the elder daughter's apprehensive facial expression reveals her edging towards maturity.[4]
The Painter's Daughters Chasing a Butterfly proved to be a pivotal moment in Gainsborough's artistry as Jonathan Jones writes that "[it] was one of the first works in which Gainsborough developed from his early, Dutch-realist manner to the exuberant scale of his later portraits".[5]
References
[edit]- ↑ "The Painter's Daughters chasing a Butterfly". National Gallery, London. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
- ↑ Purnell, Timothy. "Mary "Molly" Gainsborough Fischer". Find A Grave. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
- ↑ Purnell, Timothy. "Margaret "Peggy" Gainsborough". Find A Grave. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
- ↑ Glover, Michael (25 January 2013). "Great Works: The Painter's Daughters Chasing a Butterfly (c1756) by Thomas Gainsborough". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
- ↑ Jones, Jonathan (23 March 2002). "The Painter's Daughters Chasing a Butterfly, Thomas Gainsborough (c1756)". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
