Porträt Des John Marquis of Monthermer 1760

Curator: Well, here we have Pompeo Batoni's "Portrait of John Marquis of Monthermer" painted in 1760, employing oil on canvas. My immediate reaction is… well, the colour and detailing in that coat look really luscious. Editor: I see a study in the construction of aristocratic identity. The fur, the velvet, the musical instrument, the notation – all designed to portray him as a cultured individual of a certain rank within society. Curator: Absolutely, look closer at how Batoni layered those fabrics – the velvet jacket against the fur stole, juxtaposed with the gold braid trimming and lace cuffs of his shirt. It screams status, crafted as visual rhetoric. What can we tell from the construction of the garment? Was this specific weave typical? What do similar portraits of the era tell us? The texture, in itself, must convey a sense of tactility and expense to the intended audience. Editor: The backdrop as well - we can understand Batoni as fulfilling a demand. Patrons commissioned portraits like this to assert their position, so he became popular with the British elite making the Grand Tour and shaping their identities through artwork. He served their need for self-fashioning. This piece presents an idealized image of Monthermer for public consumption, part of the spectacle of power. Curator: How interesting the politics are in determining that level of representation. And how much would something like the use of that specific shade of oil contribute to the long term effects that color might have? There is so much happening at once! Editor: He would likely display this prominently within his home, thereby solidifying not just his own reputation, but, of course, that of his lineage and place within British society. It’s as much about legacy as it is about appearance. I wonder how much of it reflected reality, and what part performance it became through artifice and material accumulation. Curator: I am keen to now spend time researching pigments. These colours are far too interesting not to find the primary source. Editor: Yes, a great illustration of social values reflected and reinforced through art and material culture!