Westminster Abbey, Hospital and Company, plate seven from Original Views of London as It Is 1842

Curator: Before us is "Westminster Abbey, Hospital and Company, plate seven from Original Views of London as It Is," a lithograph and watercolor on paper created around 1842 by Thomas Shotter Boys. Editor: It has an ethereal quality, almost dreamlike. The soft washes of watercolor create this hazy atmosphere that mutes the grandeur of the architecture, but in the distance the strong gothic lines of the architecture are unyielding. Curator: Shotter Boys was particularly interested in representing the burgeoning city, but also foregrounding structures and spaces freighted with historical and cultural power. Here we have Westminster Abbey, a symbol of English royalty, religious authority, and national identity. Note also the inclusion of what would become Westminster School in the lower-left, all the children. We need to also examine the architecture with the street scenes that tell of gender and labor. Editor: I'm immediately drawn to how Boys constructs space through tonal modulations and precise line work. See how the pale washes of the sky meet the sharper edges of the Abbey. It is like we see two worlds meeting with the modern right in front of the grand past. Also how the formal facade looms over these small daily existences, dwarfed under its imposing geometry. Curator: And within those 'small daily existences,' we glimpse a Victorian society grappling with the impact of industrialization. It's critical to consider who is represented in this cityscape. The subjects strolling are positioned on the very margins, rendered invisible by the power of the Abbey itself. Editor: The restrained palette certainly emphasizes the solemnity of the scene and is also somewhat unusual when you think about typical cityscapes from that period. The architectural rendering almost feels like a controlled explosion of lines creating an interplay between the micro and macro. Curator: Exactly. Understanding this lithograph necessitates placing it within a larger framework of 19th-century societal structures. Here we see both privilege and anonymity in ways that speak to the broader cultural conditions of London at this time. Editor: I will come back for just the beauty of those washes alone! The precision of line contrasting with the softness in rendering invites endless visual analysis, irrespective of context. Curator: And for me, its lasting power lies in its ability to encapsulate the complex historical, social, and aesthetic tensions of its era.