Etty

This one is by the always impressive William Etty.

 

William Etty

A British art history website recently posted the most comprehensive catalog of the William Etty's work that I have yet seen.  Quite a few were new to me, so I'm posting another series on this great English artist.  We start with a  piece which had no descriptive text.

 

Sawing

The musculature is exceptional in this William Etty painting, Man Sawing.

 

cross

While there's a cross prominent in this one,

the model isn't a typical representation of Christ.

 

Modern observers have asked if this study involved some self-censorship because of the way the crotch is painted.  As The Advocate's art critic put it, "Something's missing."  In any event, we once again get a fully developed example of William Etty's ability to paint the male form beautifully.  The original sold at auction last year, and although the price was not disclosed, the auction website stated that it brought 35% over the presale estimate.  Mr. Etty continues to do well.

 

Two Standing Male Nudes

Two Standing Male Nudes is in the Leeds Museum and Gallery where it is described as a painting and not a study.  William Etty garnered some prudish criticism for his undraped nudes of both men and women, so we might think the draping here was to mollify that.  Look closer, however, and you'll see that the men's packages are visible anyway.  Was this a wry criticism of the critics?

 

Study with boat

My source called this one "Study of Draped Male Nude with Boat."  There is nothing 

like this that I could find in any of the painter's works featuring boats, however.

 

Prescient?

The Impressionist movement didn't turn up until about two decades after William Etty's death,

but am I the only one to see traces of it in this male nude?

 

Benaiah

William Etty's painting Benaiah Slaying Two Lion-like Men of Moab depticts the Israelite warrior and commander fo that name in action.  Benaiah served under both King Daved and King Soloman quite ably.  The painting was exhibited in 1829 to much acclaim, and we can still buy prints online.

 

Black model

Mr. Etty used more than one Black model for studies, but I'm not sure how many appeared 

in finished works.  In this case I also wonder about the cropping.  Original or later?

 

Odd combination

This last William Etty work is another that is a bit puzzling.  There is a staff clearly visible,

but there is also an implied archery motif in the model's position.  Regardless of that,

we once again see the painter's great ability to show a fine back and derriere.

 

William Etty

Early 19th C. English painter William Etty called this one "Nude in the Attitude of an Archer."

Perhaps that was because he didn't get around to paintind a bow or arrow.

 

William Etty

Rosy cheeks is what we get in this nice William Etty painting from the early 19th C.

 

Early 19th Century, Part 2 - the Art of William Etty

William Etty was an English painter active in the early 19th C. and known for his willingness and ability to accurately paint the nude male form.  (For more biographical info, click on the "William Etty" tag below this image.)  Part two of our double feature takes a look at five of his works (all studies, I believe) that show some diversity of both theme and method.

 

Triple study

Here we see three studies on one canvas.  Several reputable art websites all describe it as a study work, and that leaves me wondering if it was done this way to save canvas, or if Etty was planning some large painting with a jumble of men in it.  If so, I can't find the finished piece.

 

Natural

I'm including this G-rated piece because it shows so well Etty's gift for capturing the natural contours of the male body.  Note how the belly that even trim men tend to get in that position is shown.

 

Light

This is another example of Etty's fine derriere work, and I initially didn't know if the dramatic lighting is as he did it or "enhanced" by some later photoshopper.  Well, I reminded myself that Google is my friend, and a search showed that this is indeed the original version.  Of additional interest is the fact that the subject seems to be writing on the wall.  Early 19th C. graffiti?

 

Puzzler

This Etty work puzzles me.  There appears to be a second man mostly outside our field of view who is grabbing the primary subject by the hair while he's sitting on a stool.  Primary guy seems to be fending off the attacker with his left arm.  Leaves me wondering if this is cropped from a larger piece, and on top of all that, it reminds me of a Roman mural I saw somewhere I can't remember.

 

A certain life model I know in the UK will probably like this study by William Etty. 

This William Etty unfinished piece probably represents a wounded comrade motif.