Restoring the biographical portrait : the case of Mary Beale (1633-1699)

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dc.contributor.authorCampbell, Kristin Erinen_US
dc.date.accessioned2024-08-13T17:19:28Z
dc.date.available2024-08-13T17:19:28Z
dc.date.copyright2001en_US
dc.date.issued2001
dc.degree.departmentDepartment of History in Art
dc.degree.departmentDepartment of Art History and Visual Studies
dc.degree.levelMaster of Arts M.A.en
dc.description.abstractThis thesis investigates the development of the biography of the Baroque portrait painter, Mary Beale (1633-1699), through historiography. The conventional gendered construction of Mary, primarily as a wife and mother, and secondarily as an artist, will be traced and examined, from the earliest art historical references to her, to the most recent. The first chapter will introduce a survey of the biographical facts that are known about the life of Mary Beale, and present a sample of the literature written on Mary Beale, from 1658 to 1999/2000. These sources will be examined primarily for the role Charles Beale occupies in relation to that of his wife. Chapter two will begin to examine how Charles Beale came to be included in accounts of Mary's life and career, by investigating the notebooks of George Vertue ( 1683-1757). By claiming an authorial presence for Vertue, it is possible to identify motivations for the choices he made regarding his references to Mary Beale. Chapter three examines Horace Walpole (1717-1797), and his Anecdotes of Painting in England. The authorial voice and editorial choice exercised in the Anecdotes provides insight into decisions made by Walpole in his biographical sketch of Maty Beale. Chapter four examines the degree to which Walpole's Anecdotes of Painting in England has become an authoritative source. The influence of Walpole's account of Mary Beale has had a significant effect on subsequent treatments of the artist's life and career and the manner in which she has come to be characterised, that is, always in proximity to her husband.
dc.format.extent139 pages
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1828/17382
dc.rightsAvailable to the World Wide Weben_US
dc.titleRestoring the biographical portrait : the case of Mary Beale (1633-1699)en_US
dc.typeThesisen_US

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