In Tate Britain
Spotlights: John Opie
Free entry- Artist
- John Opie 1761–1807
- Medium
- Oil paint on canvas
- Dimensions
- Support: 759 x 638 mm
frame: 1005 x 875 x 130 mm - Collection
- Tate
- Acquisition
- Purchased 1884
- Reference
- N01167
Display caption
The pioneering feminist Mary Wollstonecraft is shown as though distracted momentarily from her studies. The sombre colours of her costume and the cloistered, darkened setting convey a sense of seriousness
Iand dedication.
Painting a woman in such a role would have been more controversial in an earlier age. It was generally thought that only wealthy men could possess intellectual power. By stressing universal human values, Sensibility inadvertently helped pave the way for claims that women – at least middle-class women – might have as
much moral and mental strength as men.
Gallery label, September 2004
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