Mrs Susanna Hoare and Child 1763 - 1764

Joshua Reynolds made this oil painting of Mrs. Susanna Hoare and Child sometime in the 18th century. Reynolds, who had an academic background, often chose to work with oil paint, a classic medium of the fine arts. Yet, to consider this work's materiality, we must also look beyond the paint itself. See how Mrs. Hoare is portrayed with her child in an informal outdoor setting. Her dress, while elegant, has a casualness to it. Her clothing, like the setting, evokes a sense of the everyday. Reynolds uses light and shadow to highlight the folds and textures of the fabric, drawing our attention to the material qualities of the dress itself. The textile's textures point towards the wider world of labor and commerce during the 1700s. The raw materials would have been sourced from afar and manufactured in Britain. The dress acts as a potent reminder of the economic systems that shaped British society at the time. Looking at the whole picture, this painting invites us to consider the intimate connection between art, materials, and the social realities of its time.