п?п·п?п?п?п? William

(1697-1764)
Every European country has experienced its 'golden' age of classical art, marked the highest achievement of the national school of art, creativity of the most talented artists. For England this was the eighteenth century. Winning in the end of XVII century bourgeois revolution has enabled this country to become the richest nation in the world, employing a constellation of talented philosophers, scientists, writers, theatrical figures and artists.
. But in the first third of XVIII century, when the great Hogarth was still young, this process began
. However, even then in England have developed a rich tradition of literature and theater, and the glorious names of poets predshestvuyusche first time Geoffrey Chaucer, John Milton, William Shakespeare, and especially the pride of the nation.
. Theater since the days of Shakespeare has held a special place in British life, remaining in the XVIII century, perhaps the most beloved of their enthusiasm
. It is no coincidence one of the productions was immortalized in the very early theme song Hogarth. This was particularly sensational in 1720-ies colorful and witty performance of 'Opera beggar' John Gay, the plot of which was suggested by Jonathan Swift. In this pamphlet, candid behind the masks of thieves and rogues viewers to easily distinguish between the features of modern VIPs. Tells us that the all-powerful Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole loudly applauded ditty about bribes, it is clear to him and addressed, and asked to sing it again, cleverly leaving an awkward situation. Hogarth responded to the show, which was in ecstasy, the picture 'one beggar-ra' (1727), which is exactly reproduced from the scene of the third act of the play - the details, scenery, performers - something that usually takes forever. And, moreover, this work became a kind of starting point in an unknown world, which Hogarth drew his 'muse comedy'. In the imagination of the master gradually created a 'beautiful theater' with his actors, sets, tragicomic conflicts, and most importantly - topical subjects. The authors 'pieces' of the theater were two: the artist and life itself.
William Hogarth was born in London, the son of a poor school teacher loser. Accounted for almost live in slums, cold and hunger, one after the other brothers and sisters died young, William. A boy's impressionable nature has already absorbed the 'crystal-ki' of London - had ruled on his street life and customs, to notice the contradictions and paradoxes.
In the capital of England was then concentrated the whole socio-political and cultural life of the country. But here competed luxury and poverty, elegance and vulgarity, which in the 'gallant' XVIII century did not know a single European capital. On the streets of London, in coffee shops, homes Hogarth met people of different social classes, occupations, habits and attitudes, examine them carefully. For Hogarth, whose general education was limited to the lessons his father's unfinished so parochial school, it became a real teacher, London. And master, . painted signs, . and engraver, . and court painter James Thornhill, . who Hogarth trained professional skills, . in his artistic interests were far from, . especially attracted to the ward - daily, . vitality, . realism.,
. Over the previous two centuries in the country settled many foreign portrait painters, sometimes prominent, often - ordinary
. Aristocracy valued and collected pictures of mostly old Italian and Flemish masters, and to the XVIII century in England, there were no significant domestic portraiture, as well as the artist who painted genre paintings and landscapes.
. Hogarth first came on a risky and thorny path the initiator of new genres
. And, in fact, became the creator of an original, purely English art. 'I went to quite a new genre - the writing of the paintings and engravings on the creation of modern moral subjects - an area not yet well proven in any country and in any time' - he later recalled in the 'Autobiography'.
. First picturesque 'play' Hogarth - a series of six paintings 'Career whore' (1731) - shows the bottom of English society
. This dirty streets away from the fashionable heart of London, . miserable cold rooms cheap homes, . often become a hangout tramps and thieves, a prison, . terrible image which lived in the mind of Hogarth's childhood, . - His father was arrested for nonpayment of debts.,
. Accurate and is typical not only the history of the fall of the heroine Hogarth - Mary Hekebaut, inexperienced, the provincial, with a light hand pimp turned into a prostitute
. It seems that all the characters are written with real people, they are even identified with the well-known public contemporaries. This is no accident - Hogarth wanted to plot and moral of each scene and the series as a whole have been very clear to the viewer.
. This approach to painting was completely new in visual art, but not in philosophy, theater and literature of England of XVIII century
. Belief in the penal, purifying power of art was characteristic of the English Enlightenment, who called to actively intervene in the life and influence on her.
Hogarth was the first and most striking artist-educator England. The famous writer, educator, Henry Fielding, Hogarth proclaimed 'one of the most useful satirists of his time'. For Hogarth, the main task of 'useful arts' - no entertainment value, and the exposure of vice, the trial of life, which administers satire. Engravings, who with his own paintings done Hogarth, sold out, were transported to all corners of England, crossed the English Channel, they brought their author fame.
. Inspired by the enthusiastic reception of its first series - scenes from it played on utensils, fans, and the theme was used in a theatrical setting - Hogarth began creating a new one.
. By 1735 appeared 'Career libertine', consisting of eight paintings
. New scenic performance showed how degenerate sons of the class that actually won in the revolution of the late XVII century and sent England in the progressive movement path of capitalist development.
. Young people, like the main hero of the series, Thomas Reykvellu often forgotten about in New England extended the principle of 'common sense', has embarked on questionable adventures, unwinding acquired by the fathers of
. In this series, finally determine the main direction of art Hogarth: satirically sharp realism. In the twentieth century in a somewhat modified plot of this series was written by the great opera composer Stravinsky's 'Rake's Progress'.
. In contrast to the pre Hogarth Dutch, Flemish, French genre pictures, English artist is not limited to the descriptive display of one scene
. He has combined each series of shared story, a single hero, the action develops from picture to picture. As in the play, here is the prologue, the climax and epilogue, which allow the viewer to follow the proceedings, to empathize with the actors, blame and ridicule unworthy deeds and manners.
. Between the extreme events of both series - the arrival in London of Mary and her funeral, joining the legacy of Thomas and his confinement in a lunatic asylum Bedlam - Hogarth depicts in detail the life of London
. For the first time in the art of the city becomes not just a background, and even the place of action, but a living organism, with its changing face, character, mood. He becomes an independent subject in the artist's work, as evidenced by the performance even greater sense of a series of 'Four time of day' (late 1730-x).
. Later, in his famous engraving "Gin Lane" (1751) Hogarth shows the most ugly and disgusting grimace city - rampant alcoholism and its consequences, then become a major scourge of English society and pain
. In 1740-ies in London gin worth almost cheaper tea, for this reason that the death rate exceeded the birth rate doubled, for a hundred residents, including children and the elderly accounted for pubs.
. By the mid 1740-ies Hogarth was already a prominent figure in British culture, just secured the man, but continued to remain a champion of justice, laid bare the 'plague' that hit not only 'no-za', and 'top' of English society.
. In 1744, under the brush Hogarth born six new series of paintings, . the most famous of its beautiful theater - 'Marriage ц?', . where the artist ridicules and condemns no longer cheap prostitutes and a set of, . not insignificant libertines, . but the higher circles of English society.,
. In those days, impoverished aristocracy of England sought to move closer to the rich bourgeoisie, often going to the 'fashionable marriages' - 'business' unions without love
. Outstanding English writer, . younger contemporary of Hogarth, Oliver Goldsmith in his famous satirical 'citizen of the world', describes such a typical situation: '... now, . when the young couple plans to marry, . mutual affection and common tastes of the prospective spouses is the latest and most little consideration,
. But if you match their property interests, then succumbed to the mutual attraction of the soul, they are ready at any moment to conclude a contract. It has long been laid lawn cavalier unconscious fall in love with groves of marriageable age girls'. These alliances have led, as a rule, to sad consequences.
. Hogarth first creates social satire, ahead of his contemporary writers Fielding and paving the way in literature, William Thackeray and Charles Dickens in the XIX century, but in painting, Hogarth in England, nor, nor later was nothing like that happened.
. Series 'Marriage ц?' remarkable achievements and picturesque, but only the twentieth century failed to appreciate the high aesthetic qualities of works of the artist, the brilliant mastery Hogarth colorist.
. In 1750-ies in the works of Hogarth's turn came to the 'holy of holies' of English political system - 'parliamentary elections'
. This is the last picturesque series of four paintings became a kind of outcome 'modern moral subjects'. Conscience and the calling of educator-fighter is not allowed Hogarth to ignore what was then the pain of all the advanced people, as newspapers and satirical pamphlets. In the ruling circles of the country ruled by corrupt, politics is reduced to the level of small sales, and the campaign for elections to the parliament, which was so proud of England, was only a banal fight for lucrative. Although Hogarth was a good citizen, the son of his class and is not intended to overthrow the existing system in England, he had seen and experienced evil, hindering the prosperity of his homeland. He had turned against him with all the force of his satiric realism, anticipating the future of the art of the great satirists of the Spaniard Goya and Daumier Frenchman.
. Of course, Hogarth was not easy to live with such an attitude, embodying it in a purely original art
. He was famous, but not widely recognized and loved, and most importantly, he had no disciples and close followers. Artists of those years and later, in the heyday of the national school of painting preferred to depict the life of refined aristocrats, bourgeois classes and farmers. Portraits of grand ladies, gentlemen and imitate them nouveaux riches were a favorite genre in English society.
Gave him a tribute and Hogarth. Actually, he began his career as a painter with a small custom portraits that appeared in late 1720-ies. But in his first canvases, for example, 'Marriage Bekingema S. and M. Cox' (1729) Hogarth decisively broke with the prevailing tradition of grand portraits. He wrote their models more frequently in the family circle, in an intimate setting - in the interior or on the lap of nature, where the characters are united by a common action, conversation, an event that gives the product of the nature of the genre. Such 'speaking pictures' are the specific phenomenon of English. The traditions he established the genre of the group portrait being felt in the original portrait of the late great English tragic actor - 'David Garrick and his wife' (1757).
. Among the friends and admirers Hogarth actors were particularly large, because he passionately loved the theater
. In the portrait gallery of the artist immortalized in the famous master of the English stage - 'D. Garrick as Richard III', 'Lavinia Fenton,' and others.
. At the end of life, reached the peaks of professional skills, wise, old and lonely artist is drawn to images of people from the people: 'Portraits of servants' (1760-e), 'Girl with shrimps' (1763)
. The main advantage of these, though unfinished, work in their amazing vitality, distinctiveness. Each image is valuable as a person. And this approach to man, and the choice of models were fundamentally nova. Innovatively bold decision was picturesque 'Girls with shrimps', . by far the runaway sketchy impressionistic manner of execution, . bright colors all, . hated what was going Hogarth 'black masters' his time, . which imitated the old canvases,
. This work was a true masterpiece of the artist.
Lomaia traditional values were all masters of art, including his first in England theoretical work on the aesthetics - 'Analysis of Beauty' (1752). In the last years of life Hogarth increasingly felt lonely among today's young artists, especially harassed him were becoming extremely fashionable Joshua Reynolds, the future president of the Royal Academy of Arts.
. Epitaph Hogarth wrote to Garrick: '... If genius kindles your soul, stop, passerby, if the nature touches you, tear damage, but if nothing excites you, go away, because the noble dust Hogarth rests here'
. He created a kind of encyclopedia of the English life of his time, laid the picturesque features of the national language and entered into the history of world art as the 'father of English painting', to pave the way for the masters of England the second half of XVIII century.
. In 1721 Hogarth engraving made 'Bubbles Southern Seas' and 'Lot-yard' - things sensational
. Just before the ruined and destroyed a lot of depositors 'South Sea', among the founders of which were crowned heads. With regard to the lottery, then they came at that time in fashion, and Hogarth was the first who suspected them a fair share of fraud.
Soon Hogarth wrote 'Masquerades and operas' (1724), 'Questioning Bembridzha' (1729), 'Sarah Malcolm' (1732). Interrogation Bembridzha was another event of the day. Special parliamentary commission has considered a case of horrific abuse and brutality of the prison director for insolvent debtors, and this noisy the whole of London. And Sarah Malcolm was an accomplice to the brutal crime and has attracted such attention that her skeleton was put on public display later.
. Hogarth had a quarrelsome temper, . and first brought fame (but not the glory) parody of court painter, William Kent, . whose work is in fact not rise above mediocrity and that, . was particularly hateful Hogarth, . lassitude Englishman, . was a pupil of Italians,
. Then he quarreled with them highly valued, though it is not first-rate painter James Thornhill, and with the Garrick. Conflict with Thornhill had, however, a deeper reason. Hogarth secretly married with his young daughter. (Later, an angry father forgave them). With Garrick as Hogarth was a time at odds because very shallow. The famous actor made Hogarth some small comment about his portrait. After listening to each other, Hogarth rushed to the easel and plastered his face with black paint. Garrick, however, took this as just a silly prank. He never stopped loving Hogarth.