Drawing after the Antique at the British Museum, 1809–1817: “Free” Art Education and the Advent of the Liberal State
From 1808 the British Museum in London began regularly to open its newly established Townley Gallery so that art students could draw from the ancient sculptures housed there. This article documents and comments on this development in art education, based on an analysis of the 165 individuals recorde...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Yale University
2017-04-01
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| Series: | British Art Studies |
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| Online Access: | http://britishartstudies.ac.uk/issues/issue-index/issue-5/after-antique |
| _version_ | 1818955314113806336 |
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| author | Martin Myrone |
| author_facet | Martin Myrone |
| author_sort | Martin Myrone |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | From 1808 the British Museum in London began regularly to open its newly established Townley Gallery so that art students could draw from the ancient sculptures housed there. This article documents and comments on this development in art education, based on an analysis of the 165 individuals recorded in the surviving register of attendance at the Museum, covering the period 1809–17. The register is presented as a photographic record, with a transcription and biographical directory. The accompanying essay situates the opening of the Museum’s sculpture rooms to students within a far-reaching set of historical shifts. It argues that this new museum access contributed to the early nineteenth-century emergence of a liberal state. But if the rhetoric surrounding this development emphasized freedom and general public benefit in the spirit of liberalization, the evidence suggests that this new level of access actually served to further entrench the “middle-classification” of art education at this historical juncture. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-20T10:36:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d2a9a2e920cc4f87acf78621a599e1e1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2058-5462 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-20T10:36:05Z |
| publishDate | 2017-04-01 |
| publisher | Yale University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | British Art Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-d2a9a2e920cc4f87acf78621a599e1e12022-12-21T19:43:38ZengYale UniversityBritish Art Studies2058-54622017-04-01510.17658/issn.2058-5462/issue-05/mmyroneDrawing after the Antique at the British Museum, 1809–1817: “Free” Art Education and the Advent of the Liberal StateMartin Myrone0Tate BritainFrom 1808 the British Museum in London began regularly to open its newly established Townley Gallery so that art students could draw from the ancient sculptures housed there. This article documents and comments on this development in art education, based on an analysis of the 165 individuals recorded in the surviving register of attendance at the Museum, covering the period 1809–17. The register is presented as a photographic record, with a transcription and biographical directory. The accompanying essay situates the opening of the Museum’s sculpture rooms to students within a far-reaching set of historical shifts. It argues that this new museum access contributed to the early nineteenth-century emergence of a liberal state. But if the rhetoric surrounding this development emphasized freedom and general public benefit in the spirit of liberalization, the evidence suggests that this new level of access actually served to further entrench the “middle-classification” of art education at this historical juncture.http://britishartstudies.ac.uk/issues/issue-index/issue-5/after-antiqueBritish MuseumEighteenth-CenturyClassicismDrawingArt EducationArt SchoolsElgin Marbles |
| spellingShingle | Martin Myrone Drawing after the Antique at the British Museum, 1809–1817: “Free” Art Education and the Advent of the Liberal State British Art Studies British Museum Eighteenth-Century Classicism Drawing Art Education Art Schools Elgin Marbles |
| title | Drawing after the Antique at the British Museum, 1809–1817: “Free” Art Education and the Advent of the Liberal State |
| title_full | Drawing after the Antique at the British Museum, 1809–1817: “Free” Art Education and the Advent of the Liberal State |
| title_fullStr | Drawing after the Antique at the British Museum, 1809–1817: “Free” Art Education and the Advent of the Liberal State |
| title_full_unstemmed | Drawing after the Antique at the British Museum, 1809–1817: “Free” Art Education and the Advent of the Liberal State |
| title_short | Drawing after the Antique at the British Museum, 1809–1817: “Free” Art Education and the Advent of the Liberal State |
| title_sort | drawing after the antique at the british museum 1809 1817 free art education and the advent of the liberal state |
| topic | British Museum Eighteenth-Century Classicism Drawing Art Education Art Schools Elgin Marbles |
| url | http://britishartstudies.ac.uk/issues/issue-index/issue-5/after-antique |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT martinmyrone drawingaftertheantiqueatthebritishmuseum18091817freearteducationandtheadventoftheliberalstate |