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拍品專文
John William Godward was a shy and reclusive artist, which has resulted in something of a dearth of information concerning his life and works. He belonged to the second generation of classical painters who followed in the footsteps of Frederic, Lord Leighton and Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema and is now recognized as one of the major neo-classicists, a painter of considerable technical skill with an immediately recognizable aesthetic. Who Can They Be?, datable to 1918 and painted during the waning days of the First World War, which had significantly reduced the artist’s output, comes from what Professor Vern Swanson has termed Godward's 'Middle Roman Years.’ Godward moved to Rome in 1912, and would spend nearly 10 years there before returning to London a year before his death in 1921. Both the Italian climate and the ever-present historic heritage of the Eternal City served as an inspiration for the backdrops of the artist’s Greco-Roman images, which frequently depict a single female figure in classical dress set against a Mediterranean view or within a classical interior.
The paintings created while the artist was in Rome are among the most iconic examples of his style, and all convey a feeling of serenity which transports the viewer to another time and place. Who Can They Be? is related to a group of paintings within Godward’s oeuvre which contain slightly mysterious narratives. As opposed to more common scenes by the artist which depict his classical beauties in languorous repose or contemplation, works like Who Can They Be?, The Rendezvous, and The Signal show their central figures interacting with or responding to someone or something outside the picture plane. Here, an elegant young woman attired in a striking saffron robe and set against a dramatic mountainous landscape stares down over the marble balustrade of her terrace while pondering the titular question. Whoever the unannounced guests arriving below may be, their appearance does not seem to have ruffled the statuesque calm of the young woman but merely sparked her curiosity, offering the viewer no hint of an answer as we too ponder the same unresolved question.
The paintings created while the artist was in Rome are among the most iconic examples of his style, and all convey a feeling of serenity which transports the viewer to another time and place. Who Can They Be? is related to a group of paintings within Godward’s oeuvre which contain slightly mysterious narratives. As opposed to more common scenes by the artist which depict his classical beauties in languorous repose or contemplation, works like Who Can They Be?, The Rendezvous, and The Signal show their central figures interacting with or responding to someone or something outside the picture plane. Here, an elegant young woman attired in a striking saffron robe and set against a dramatic mountainous landscape stares down over the marble balustrade of her terrace while pondering the titular question. Whoever the unannounced guests arriving below may be, their appearance does not seem to have ruffled the statuesque calm of the young woman but merely sparked her curiosity, offering the viewer no hint of an answer as we too ponder the same unresolved question.