Sir John Gilbert, R.A., P.R.W.S. (1817-1897)
Sir John Gilbert, R.A., P.R.W.S. (1817-1897)

The marriage of Katherine and Petruchio: The Taming of the Shrew

Details
Sir John Gilbert, R.A., P.R.W.S. (1817-1897)
The marriage of Katherine and Petruchio: The Taming of the Shrew
signed and dated 'John Gilbert/1865.' (lower left)
pencil, watercolour and bodycolour
20 x 35 3/8 in. (50.8 x 89.9 cm.)
Provenance
with Tho.sAgnew & Sons Ltd, Manchester, no. 9.
Richard Peacock Esq., Gorton Hall, Manchester.
Literature
S. Bucklow & S. Woodcock, Sir John Gilbert: Art and Imagination in the Victorian Age, London, 2011, p. 15 & p. 252.
Exhibited
London, Royal Society of Painters in Water-colours, 1866.
Manchester, Royal Jubilee Exhibition, 1887.

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Lot Essay

'She is my goods, my chattels; she is my house,
My household stuff, my field, my barn,
My horse, my ox, my ass, my any thing;
And here she stands, touch her whoever dare;
I'll bring mine action on the proudest he
That stops my way in Padua. Grumio,
Draw forth thy weapon, we are beset with thieves;
Rescue thy mistress, if thou be a man.
Fear not, sweet wench, they shall not touch thee'

Petruchio's speech from the wedding scene in Act II: Scene 3 of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew provided the inspiration for this stunning large scale watercolour by Sir John Gilbert. Shakespeare's plays had a huge influence on Gilbert who had been commissioned to illustrate an edition of The Plays of Shakespeare, first published in 1856, and throughout his career he continued to paint subjects drawn from these great works, many of which were then exhibited at the Royal Watercolour Society and The British Institution.
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