Signs of Man
6465 William Larkin
Icons of splendour
Roy Strong
1994 / 164 PAGES.
Language: Three editions: Italian, English, Spanish
The opulence of the English Renaissance is distilled in the portraits of the members of the court of James I, painted between 1609 and 1619 by William Larkin, whose body of work is reconstructed here for the very first time.
William Larkin offers a dazzling depiction of an opulent society: the bejewelled aristocracy of the court of James I. His portraits belong, in their own right to the main trend in British art, which has long shown a propensity for flat, two-dimensional drawing. Through a meticulous portrayal of every fold and crimp, every bit of lace and gold embroidery, Larkin’s lavishly-dressed characters are called on to narrate the opulence of British aristocracy with the same forcefulness of Byzantine icons. This volume, completely devoted to Larkin, sets out to recognise his worth as an artist.