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Rocky landscape with Hagar and Ishmael
GAINSBOROUGH, Thomas (1727-88)
Gainsborough's only original religious composition, this work was painted around 1788. Mother and son are shown trudging into the dark wilderness. Following the description given in Genesis XXI, 9-15 Hagar carries the precious water bottle on her shoulder. With its rich, dark tonalities, this picture is an essay in the style of the seventeenth-century Spanish painter Murillo, who was a powerful influence on Gainsborough in the 1780s.
Collection Area
Art
Item Number
NMW A 100
Creation/Production
GAINSBOROUGH, Thomas
Date: 1788 ca
Acquisition
Purchase, 7/7/1965
Measurements
Height
(cm): 78.2
Width
(cm): 95
Height
(in): 30
Width
(in): 37
Techniques
oil on canvas
Techniques (fine art)
art dept - fine
Fine Art - painting
Material
oil
canvas
Location
Gallery 04
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