In 1762 George Stubbs was summoned to Rotherham stately home Wentworth Woodhouse by the 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, to paint several of his prized horses.
One of the grandest country houses in England and a rival to Chatsworth House and Blenheim Palace, it was to be his place of work for almost a year.
Aged 38, Stubbs was much sought-after for his highly polished, anatomically precise and naturalistic paintings of animals, but this commission would see him produce the most famous and feted artwork of his career.
Among the seven oils on canvas Stubbs created was one he humbly described on his receipt as a ‘larger than life portrait of a horse’.
The portrait, of Watson-Wentworth’s retired racehorse Whistlejacket on an unfigured background unusual for the time, would go on to be described as ‘one of the most important British paintings of the 18th Century’ and now hangs in the National Portrait Gallery in London.
Mares and Foals with an Unfigured Background, Whistlejacket with the Head Groom and Two Other Principal Stallions, Portrait of Scrub in a Landscape with John Singleton Up and the painting Five of Lord Rockingham’s Stag Hounds in a Landscape are on loan from a private collection, along with Stubbs’s acclaimed book of detailed anatomical studies, Anatomy of A Horse, published in 1766.
Whistlejacket will remain on display at the National Gallery during the anniversary year. Whistlejacket fans will be pleased to hear that in addition to his portrait replica which has long hung in the mansion, he does make an entrance, featuring in Stubbs’ painting of head groom Jos Cobb, wearing a unicorn’s horn in Mark Wallinger’s 2001 black and white screenprint Ghost and in Hugo Wilson’s State I is presented irreverently, turning his back on national significance and kicking out at the viewer with its hind legs.
Jen Booth, exhibitions and interpretation manager, said: 'This is the Trust’s largest exhibition ever to be produced and typically for us, we are taking a bold stance.
'Stubbs’ works will be shown with pieces from nine important contemporary artists known for exploring ideas 'beneath the surface’ of their subjects, including Tracey Emin and Turner Prize winner Mark Wallinger.'
Studies of letters and documents at Sheffield Archives by the Trust’s team of volunteer researchers means the exhibition will also shed light on Stubbs’ time in Wentworth, the 13-year relationship which developed between the artist and the Marquess and the lives of the servants depicted in two of the paintings.
Beneath the Surface: George Stubbs & Contemporary Artists Exhibition runs until November 3.
wentworthwoodhouse.org.uk
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