Monday, January 25, 2010

'The Haunted Wood'



"There is a border-land between the grave and the gay, the tragic and the comic, as between the sublime and ridiculous, in which Mr. Pettie is as much at home as when he confines himself to the domain of the more purely dramatic. He generally , however , shows a relish for the sensational, and the picture we engrave from the Winter Exhibition at the French Gallery is a happy and amusing example of somewhat special faculty, as well as a good specimen of the artist's clever and facile execution. No painter conceives a subject like this better than Mr. Pettie.'


The Illustrated London News Jan 20, 1872

3 comments:

  1. Such an interesting commentary and so good to see examples of the distance contemporary critics/viewers could have with works like these from another age. Border-lands have to be some of the best, if most delicate places to tread! Just perfect with your images on the side.

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  2. Ohhhhh thank you ...it is wonderful to read critics from the past..

    I'm slightly obsessed with trees and the forest...I'm only starting to realise this though...the subject repeats itself again and again...

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  3. It would be lovely to have a big fat book of your thoughts and posts. Yes it would.

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