Fine Arts

The Great British Caravaggio: Joseph Wright of Derby

Wright of Derby’s enlightening candlelight paintings are featured at London’s National Gallery.
The Great British Caravaggio: Joseph Wright of Derby
“An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump,” 1768, by Joseph Wright of Derby. Oil on canvas; 50 inches by 96 inches. National Gallery, London. Copyright The National Gallery, London
Lorraine Ferrier
|Updated:
0:00
LONDON—Preeminent 18th-century painter Joseph Wright of Derby’s art is synonymous with the Age of Enlightenment, especially in his depictions of science and industry. 
However, the “Wright of Derby: From the Shadows” exhibition at London’s National Gallery challenges the belief that the British artist captured scenes of the Enlightenment for the sake of science alone. Art experts analyzing Wright’s dramatic candlelight scenes, painted between 1765 and 1773, discovered themes of morality, melancholy, and the sublime. 
Lorraine Ferrier
Lorraine Ferrier
Author
Lorraine Ferrier writes about fine arts and craftsmanship for The Epoch Times. She focuses on artists and artisans, primarily in North America and Europe, who imbue their works with beauty and traditional values. She's especially interested in giving a voice to the rare and lesser-known arts and crafts, in the hope that we can preserve our traditional art heritage. She lives and writes in a London suburb, in England.