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Lot Essay
Despite themes in his early work from 1858-65 being centred around Hebraic subjects, Solomon found the bulk of his potential patronage to lie amongst gentile collectors and patrons in possession of more formal tastes in art. In response to this, he became an early proponent of the growing Victorian revival school of classicism, within which the young artist developed his own, highly sensual approach. The sincerity of his early Jewish subjects was, however, not lost and can still be felt in the almost stoic, statue-like figures which he chose to paint. Works such as Habet! (1865, Private Collection) and The Toilette of a Roman Lady (1869, Delaware Art Museum), both exhibited at the Royal Academy, capture his own his unique approach to the classical subject matter popular at the time.
The present work, executed during Solomon’s first trip to Italy in 1866-7, indicates a marked shift in his practice catalysed by the new surroundings in which the artist found himself. Here we see Solomon fully releasing himself to the intense, richly decorative practice of the Greek Orthodox church. He has opted for a tightly packed composition which mimics Eastern icons with their delicate portraits encased in shining, hammered gold or silver cases. Here, we can sense how he would have been immersed in the sights, smells, and sounds of religious ceremony.
Following this work’s exhibition at the Dudley Gallery in 1868, a critic for The Times thought Solomon 'an artist of real power… He is fond of ringing the changes on special scales or gamuts of colour. Thus, his 'Bacchus', his 'Greek Priest', his 'Heliogabalus', in the glowing robes of a high priest of the Sun, are so many exercises in the key of gold, and very skilfully managed…' (The Times, 4 February 1868, p. 4).
This work belongs to an important yet brief period in the artist’s career where, instead of creating the imagined worlds of classical Rome or Greece, he chose to paint his surroundings. The viewer is therefore offered the chance to see the world as Solomon did; this is therefore not a religious subject in the classic sense, but instead a highly emotive study in mysticism and an aesthetic exploration of ornament.
This work comes from the important collection of Eleanor Tonge Coltart who, alongside her first husband Jonathan Tonge and second husband William Coltart, was amongst the most prominent collectors of British art in this period. For more information on this collection, please refer to the catalogue note for lot 162.
The present work, executed during Solomon’s first trip to Italy in 1866-7, indicates a marked shift in his practice catalysed by the new surroundings in which the artist found himself. Here we see Solomon fully releasing himself to the intense, richly decorative practice of the Greek Orthodox church. He has opted for a tightly packed composition which mimics Eastern icons with their delicate portraits encased in shining, hammered gold or silver cases. Here, we can sense how he would have been immersed in the sights, smells, and sounds of religious ceremony.
Following this work’s exhibition at the Dudley Gallery in 1868, a critic for The Times thought Solomon 'an artist of real power… He is fond of ringing the changes on special scales or gamuts of colour. Thus, his 'Bacchus', his 'Greek Priest', his 'Heliogabalus', in the glowing robes of a high priest of the Sun, are so many exercises in the key of gold, and very skilfully managed…' (The Times, 4 February 1868, p. 4).
This work belongs to an important yet brief period in the artist’s career where, instead of creating the imagined worlds of classical Rome or Greece, he chose to paint his surroundings. The viewer is therefore offered the chance to see the world as Solomon did; this is therefore not a religious subject in the classic sense, but instead a highly emotive study in mysticism and an aesthetic exploration of ornament.
This work comes from the important collection of Eleanor Tonge Coltart who, alongside her first husband Jonathan Tonge and second husband William Coltart, was amongst the most prominent collectors of British art in this period. For more information on this collection, please refer to the catalogue note for lot 162.