''Chairing the Member'' is an 1828

oil painting Oil painting is a painting method involving the procedure of painting with pigments combined with a drying oil as the Binder (material), binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on canvas, wood panel, or oil on coppe ...

by the British artist

Benjamin Robert Haydon Benjamin Robert Haydon (; 26 January 178622 June 1846) was a British painter who specialised in grand historical pictures, although he also painted a few contemporary subjects and portraits. His commercial success was damaged by his often tactle ...

. Combining elements of

genre painting Genre painting (or petit genre) is the painting of genre art, which depicts aspects of everyday life by portraying ordinary people engaged in common activities. One common definition of a genre scene is that it shows figures to whom no identity ca ...

and

history painting History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek and Roman mythology and B ...

, it was inspired by an event he has witnessed while imprisoned in the

King's Bench Prison The King's Bench Prison was a prison in Southwark, south London, England, from the Middle Ages until it closed in 1880. It took its name from the King's Bench court of law in which cases of defamation, bankruptcy and other misdemeanours were he ...

for

debt Debt is an obligation that requires one party, the debtor, to pay money Loan, borrowed or otherwise withheld from another party, the creditor. Debt may be owed by a sovereign state or country, local government, company, or an individual. Co ...

. The prisoners staged a mock election in which two of them were "elected" as Members of Parliament. Haydon had portrayed the actual voting taking place in his 1827 work ''

The Mock Election ''The Mock Election'' is an oil on canvas genre painting by the British artist Benjamin Robert Haydon, from 1827. History and description It was inspired by a real-life event that took place while Haydon was himself imprisoned at the King's Be ...

''. For the second, companion painting he focused on the ceremonial chairing of the winners. It was not an accurate depiction of the scene. By the time the military arrived to restore order in the prison (represented by the file of

Grenadier Guards The Grenadier Guards (GREN GDS) is the most senior infantry regiment of the British Army, being at the top of the Infantry Order of Precedence. It can trace its lineage back to 1656 when Lord Wentworth's Regiment was raised in Bruges to protect ...

on the left) the candidates had already been confined in a

strongroom A bank vault is a secure room used by banks to store and protect valuables, cash, and important documents. Modern bank vaults are typically made of reinforced concrete and steel, with complex locking mechanisms and security systems. This article ...

. Haydon is himself seen watching the events from an upstairs window. The painting was completed by the end of August 1828 and in October went on display at the Western Exchange Bazaar in the fashionable shopping district off

Regent's Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash and James Burton. It runs from Waterloo Place ...

along with several of Haydon's other paintings including ''Venus Appearing to Anchises''. It received praise from a reviewer in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

''. While ''The Mock Election'' had been bought by

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

for the

Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic List of British royal residences, royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King ...

, he did not purchase the follow-up painting. Instead it was bought at a lower price of £300 by a man from Haydon's native

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

. It is now in the collection of the

Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in En ...

Pimlico Pimlico () is a district in Central London, in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by Lon ...

, having been acquired in 1946. Haydon never completed a planned third painting of the series ''The Election Ball''. O'Keeffe p.272

References

Bibliography

* Dart, Gregory. ''Metropolitan Art and Literature, 1810-1840: Cockney Adventures''. Cambridge University Press, 2012. * Finn, Margot C. ''The Character of Credit: Personal Debt in English Culture, 1740-1914''. Cambridge University Press, 2003. * O'Keeffe, Paul. ''A Genius for Failure: The life of Benjamin Robert Haydon''. Random House, 2011. {{DEFAULTSORT:Chairing the Member Paintings by Benjamin Robert Haydon 1828 paintings Paintings in the Tate galleries London in art Oil on canvas paintings Food and drink paintings

See also

References

Bibliography