Pimlico Fine Art Dealers

Part 4 - The Rake’s Progress - Arrested for debt…

Oh dear, things are not going well for Rakewell Esq. Must be a bit of a credit crunch on…

 For that sedan-chair read a Ferrari, spilling its Z lister celeb onto the street. Hoping to become rich and famous, he would have gone on Big Brother had it existed in 1730. Instead our pauvre hero is arrested. His original girlfriend, unable to see his flaws races to help him. That bizarre hat worn by the fellow on the left sports a leek, making him out as a proud Welshman. No doubt then it is St David’s day, March the first.

There are some beautiful instances of expression. The surprise and terror of the poor gent, the insolence of power in the bailiffs, the self-importance, too, of the Welshman. Rakewell has begun his descent into madness…

celebrity, Classic painting, fame, ferrari, hogarth, review, satire, welsh

The Tavern Scene by Hogarth, Part 3 of The Rake’s Progress.

Where’s he got to on his spiral of decline? 

Drinking, partying, the life of the Z list celebrity is our hero’s chosen path… Being fleeced by his companions – a watch is being stolen as we watch! The smashed mirror and wine-glasses and broken chair represent the moral decline that we are witnessing. Rakewell displays the careless jollity, which excess alcohol still inspire today. He laughs at the world, which isn’t laughing back, the poor dupe.

art, hogarth, painting, review, satire

THE YOUNG HERO TAKES POSSESSION OF THE MISER’S EFFECTS

So in plate one we have the young man -thoughtless, extravagant, and licentious. The effects of his behaviour are set up for us to see the coming destructive consequences of his conduct. Here Hogarth contrasts two opposite passions; the unthinking negligence of youth, and the avaricious rapacity of age.

The Rake’s vacant face, his weak gestures tell that he is being set up as a dupe.Ignorant of the value of money, he negligently leaves his bag of  gold in the reach of an old and greedy lawyer who immediately seizes the opportunity to defraud his young employer.

NB: Hogarth had, a few years before, been engaged in a law suit, which gave him some experience with lawyers…What can he have experienced?!

We are going to blog the whole of Hogarth’s series of The Rake’s Progress, I hope you enjoy them!

Classic painting, Collectors, engraving, hogarth, rakes progress, review

For an espresso aesthete pitching one  coffee against another is like
telling your two favourite sons to bare knuckle fight in the basement.
It’s hard to do. But not as hard as giving one of them a gold medal. It
can be put off no more, I can hear the Bialetti calling.

First, a vital word about utensils. Coffee must be treated as an
aging beauty, nothing in its presentation must be left to chance. The
perfection of the beverage must be reflected in the quality of its
presentation. A demitasse of perfect ivory, or on a summer’s day, an
exquisite hand-blown glass.  If you are ever offered a coffee in any
other sort of container, refuse it as you would a cup of plague.

And so to our pretenders. Sidamo - If patenting had been
around in the 9th century Ethiopia would be home to more
millionaires than Manhattan. We have these East Africans to thank for
cultivating the first Arabica bean. So having a cup of Sidamo is like
settling down to a Cornish pasty, or Parma ham - you know the maker
knew what they were doing. Sidamo is lightly perfumed and full
bodied, with a lingering bitterness like a bar of rich dark chocolate.
Each sip is full of charm and charisma, like welcoming a favourite
guest

Sulawesi is as dark as a 19th century Ghanian coal mine,
though with a perfume that jumps immediately to Versailles at its
most decadent . It lingers like that library book you’ve had so long you
daren’t take it back.

WINNER: Sidamo. Quality and originality always win through. Each
cup is different, each cup has its own character. But all will inspire you
Beethoven-like to greatness. Never underestimate the power of coffee.
Never accept substitutes. Sip and smile gently.

coffee, drink, ethipoia, indonesia, review, sidamo, sulawesi