For a while now, I have been exploring narrative themes. This is what
R. H. Ives Gammell called “poetical pictures.” In the 19th century,
this was commonly referred to as “history painting”, but by history
they did not just mean world events as we define the term. “Poetical
pictures” are paintings that draw on a narrative story, whether a
literary source, or simple metaphor, or allegory. So, the paintings
have a “subject,” in addition to being visual compositions or records
of visual experience. (This may seem obvious, but after 100 years of
breaking down narrative painting, nothing can be assumed!)
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