id: 123425
accession number: 1943.654.a
share license status: CC0
url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1943.654.a
updated:
Carving from an Overmantel, c. 1675–1677. Grinling Gibbons (British, 1648–1721). Lindenwood; The Cleveland Museum of Art, Grace Rainey Rogers Fund 1943.654.a
title: Carving from an Overmantel
title in original language:
series:
series in original language:
creation date: c. 1675–1677
creation date earliest: 1675
creation date latest: 1677
current location: 203A British Painting and Decorative Arts
creditline: Grace Rainey Rogers Fund
copyright:
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culture: England, 17th century (Charles II)
technique: lindenwood
department: European Painting and Sculpture
collection: Sculpture
type: Sculpture
find spot:
catalogue raisonne:
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CREATORS
* Grinling Gibbons (British, 1648–1721) - artist
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measurements:
state of the work:
edition of the work:
support materials:
inscriptions:
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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
title: Grinling Gibbons and the Art of Carving
opening date: 1998-10-22T00:00:00
Grinling Gibbons and the Art of Carving. Victoria and Albert Museum (organizer) (October 22, 1998-January 31, 1999).
title: British Gallery Reinstallation (June 2020)
opening date: 2020-06-30T04:00:00
British Gallery Reinstallation (June 2020). The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).
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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS
* London: Victoria and Albert Museum "Grinling Gibbons and the Art of Carving" (10/22/98 - 1/24/99); p. 183, cat. no. 115.
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PROVENANCE
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fun fact:
The swags of fruit and foliage featured in this wooden overmantel decoration evoke the bounty of the English countryside.
digital description:
See cover record.
wall description:
The arrangement of architectural elements within grand interior spaces in the late 1600s and early 1700s emphasized symmetry and height. Decorative elements such as elaborately carved mantels, mirrors, paintings, and applied wall decorations were often stacked to achieve a visual focal point at one or both ends of the room.
While the virtuoso carving of Grinling Gibbons’s wooden overmantel decoration features swags of fruit and foliage evoking the bounty of the English countryside, decorative motifs in some cases reflected the political leanings of their owners. The mantel and carved decoration on the wall above exhibit earlier Baroque influences favored by King George II (reigned 1727–1760). The mirror, with its carved plumage referencing the emblem of the Prince of Wales, alludes to the more modern French rococo taste of his son, the future George III (reigned 1760–1820). Such a combination might have been seen in the stately home of an aristocrat eager to support both sides of the political spectrum.
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RELATED WORKS
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CITATIONS
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IMAGES
web: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1943.654.a/1943.654.a_web.jpg
print: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1943.654.a/1943.654.a_print.jpg
full: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1943.654.a/1943.654.a_full.tif