
In Tate Britain
- Artist
- James Barry 1741–1806
- Medium
- Oil paint on canvas
- Dimensions
- Support: 2692 × 3670 mm
frame: 3026 × 4050 × 195 mm - Collection
- Tate
- Acquisition
- Purchased 1962
- Reference
- T00556
Display caption
Barry was a passionate champion of neo-classical history painting on a vast scale. After initial success he became a martyr to its cause, dying neglected and convinced of the hostility of the art establishment. This is one of Barry's most ambitious paintings, made for Alderman Boydell's 'Shakespeare Gallery', a collection of engraved scenes from Shakespeare by celebrated artists of the day. Boydell held an exhibition of the original pictures in 1789. Here, a heartbroken Lear supports the body of his beloved daughter Cordelia. Barry has set the tragic scene in an heroic landscape with Stonehenge in the background.
Gallery label, September 2004
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