Matthew Craske Livres

Exploring the life and work of Joseph Wright of Derby, this study delves into the artist's darker themes, contrasting with his reputation as a "painter of light." Matthew Craske examines Wright's melancholic disposition and challenges the notion of him as a progressive figure of the English Enlightenment. Instead, he portrays Wright as a reflective outsider, deeply engaged with solitude, mortality, and the passage of time. The book offers new interpretations of Wright's masterpieces, highlighting his profound artistic vision and connection to the landscape.

Taking a critical view of such conventional categorizations as the 'Rococo', the 'Neo-Classical', and the 'Romantic', Matthew Craske creates a totally new and vivid picture of eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century art in Europe. He engages with crucial thematic issues such as changes in 'taste' and 'manners' and the impact of enlightenment notions of progress. At the same time he goes well beyond the usual geographical limits of surveys to take in St Petersburg, Copenhagen, Warsaw, and Madrid. The result is a refreshingly holistic survey which sets the art of the period firmly in its social history.