William HogarthInghilterra, 1697–1764The Gate of Calais
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The Gate of Calais or O, the Roast Beef of Old England is a 1748 painting by William Hogarth, reproduced as a print from an engraving the next year. Hogarth produced the painting directly after his return from France, where he had been arrested as a spy while sketching in Calais. The scene depicts a side of beef being transported from the harbour to an English tavern in the port, while a group of undernourished, ragged French soldiers and a fat friar look on hungrily. Hogarth painted himself in the left corner with a "soldier's hand upon my shoulder."
Scheda
- Numero di inventario
- NG1464
In catalogo
Fonti
- Wikidata
- Immagine: National Gallery — William Hogarth · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Nella vita di William Hogarth
Tutta la vita1712–1764 · Luogo di lavoro
London
1748
A trip to France and “The Gate of Calais”
Back from a visit to France — which, Horace Walpole wrote, was risky after the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle — Hogarth at once painted “The Gate of Calais”: the French are shown as cringing, emaciated and superstitious, while an enormous sirloin of beef is carried to the English inn as a symbol of British prosperity. By his own account he painted himself in the left corner sketching the gate, with a soldier’s hand on his shoulder.
1749
A country house in Chiswick
In 1749 Hogarth bought a country retreat in Chiswick — now Hogarth’s House, a museum — and spent time there for the rest of his life; his main home remained the house in Leicester Fields (now Leicester Square).
