Remember, remember, the fifth of November…

A 1605 engraving by Crispijn van de Passe the Elder, depicting eight of the thirteen Gunpowder plot conspirators, including Guy Fawkes which realised £700 at Toovey’s

As Bonfire Night approaches many of us are looking forward to the spectacle of sparkling light, whizzes, pops and bangs, drifting smoke and the smell of gunpowder on a cold, still November night. But amidst our excitement it is easy to forget that fireworks on Bonfire Night commemorate a particularly bloody and turbulent time in our island’s history.

The Gunpowder Plot of 1605 was an attempt by provincial, English Roman Catholics to blow up the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament, in order to assassinate James I of England (VI of Scotland) and install his nine-year-old daughter, Princess Elizabeth, on the throne as a Roman Catholic head of state. The plot, led by Robert Catesby, was revealed by means of an anonymous letter. Famously, Guy Fawkes was discovered with thirty-six barrels of gunpowder during a search of the House of Lords at midnight on 4th November 1605. He and his seven surviving accomplices were tortured, tried for and convicted of high treason and sentenced to death by being hung, drawn and quartered.

The print shown here was published around 1605 by a leading Dutch printmaker, Crispijn van de Passe the Elder, and shows eight of the thirteen conspirators, including Guy Fawkes. It is an extraordinary depiction of some of those involved, giving life to this particular moment in history.

A 1603 engraving of Elizabeth I by Isaac Oliver sold at Toovey’s for £3800

In contrast the 1603 engraving of Elizabeth I by Isaac Oliver speaks of a different moment in history. The qualities of tolerance and fairness were seeded, though not perfected, during the reign of Elizabeth I (1533-1603). There had been much conflict and bloodshed after Henry VIII’s break with Rome as Roman Catholics and Protestants each sought to establish their authority and particular understandings of the Christian faith in England.

Elizabeth I came to the throne in 1558. Her first aim was to return England to the Protestant faith. What she and her advisors created was a church which was, and remains, both Catholic and Reformed.

The Act of Supremacy of 1558 established Elizabeth as Supreme Governor of the Church of England. In the same year the Act of Uniformity was passed by a narrow majority in Parliament. It required the population to attend an Anglican church each Sunday. In addition it specified that a new version of the Book of Common Prayer be used.

After Parliament had been dismissed a series of Royal Injunctions were courageously passed by Elizabeth I in 1559. The result of this was that the wording of the liturgy for Holy Communion remained open to a variety of interpretations. This allowed Christians holding differing understandings of the nature of the consecrated bread and wine to receive this sacrament with integrity in the privacy of their own hearts. Elizabeth famously declared that she did not wish to “make windows into men’s souls” on the basis that “there is only one Jesus Christ and all the rest is a dispute over trifles”.

The shadow of history often has much to say to our own times.
Elizabeth I’s pragmatic and courageous qualities of compromise, tolerance and ambiguity have blessed our nation and our Church. It is my prayer that we will allow these qualities to remain central to our continued, shared national story – our common narrative.

By Rupert Toovey, a senior director of Toovey’s, the leading fine art auction house in West Sussex, based on the A24 at Washington. Originally published in the West Sussex Gazette.

‘The Woodcut: From Dürer to Now’ at Pallant House

Albrecht Dürer, ‘Repose on the Flight into Egypt’, c.1504, (Hussey Bequest, Chichester District Council, 1985), © Pallant House Gallery
Albrecht Dürer, ‘Repose on the Flight into Egypt’, c.1504, (Hussey Bequest, Chichester District Council, 1985), © Pallant House Gallery

An intimate exhibition ‘The Woodcut: from Dürer to Now’ has just opened at the Pallant House Gallery, Chichester. It examines the art of the woodcuts and wood engravings from the time of the Renaissance to today.

To produce a woodblock print the artist’s design would be pasted to the block so that the engraver could cut the image into the wood. The printer would then print the image.

The first woodcut in the exhibition is an image by the Renaissance artist Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528). Produced in 1511, it comes from a series of prints he made illustrating scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary. Dürer’s treatment of the scene is revolutionary. The infant Jesus sleeps whilst Mary spins yarn in the company of Joseph and two attendant Angels. The group are watched over by the Holy Spirit depicted as a dove in the heavens. There is a gentle domesticity to the scene in contrast to the urgency of their flight from Herod. Note also Dürer’s treatment of perspective in the buildings and landscape.

Straight grained cherry was often used in the production of Japanese woodcuts as it allowed for fine detail to be carved. As many as ten blocks were used to achieve the diversity of colour. At each stage of the process proofs would be made for approval.

Utagawa Hiroshige, ‘Travellers surprised by sudden rain (Shono haku-u)’, c.1833 - 4, Woodcut on paper, (Hussey Bequest, Chichester District Council, 1985), © Pallant House Gallery
Utagawa Hiroshige, ‘Travellers surprised by sudden rain (Shono haku-u)’, c.1833 – 4, Woodcut on paper, (Hussey Bequest, Chichester District Council, 1985), © Pallant House Gallery

One of the best known of all Japanese woodcut designers is Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858). Hiroshige’s landscape prints are internationally acclaimed and are amongst the most frequently reproduced of all Japanese works of art. They are defined by their unusual compositions and humorous depictions of people involved in everyday activities. His exquisite observation and depiction of weather, light and season are exemplary. Hiroshige’s work proved hugely influential for many leading European artists including Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh.

Hiroshige combined his print making with his inherited position as a fire warden. In 1832 he was invited to join an embassy of Shogunal officials on a journey which allowed him to observe the Tokaido Road, the Eastern sea Route which followed the coast through mountain range to Kyoto. The resultant series was called ‘Tokaido Go-ju-san-Tsugi’ (The Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido), from which ‘Travellers surprised by sudden rain (Shono haku-u)’ is taken. It portrays farmers and porters running for shelter as the sudden downpour of rain darkens the sky and obscures the mountains. The figures, angle of the rain and the wind in the trees, lends the image a sense of urgency and movement.

In the early part of the 20th Century there was a revival of woodblock engraving in Britain. The strength of contrast in the black and white, and the softness of line, seemed to articulate something particular to a generation who had lived through the First World War.

Ben Nicholson, ‘5 Circles’, c.1934, woodcut on paper, (Private collection)
Ben Nicholson, ‘5 Circles’, c.1934, woodcut on paper, (Private collection)

Ben Nicholson (1894-1982) was a leading artist in British Modernism. ‘5 Circles’ was the only woodcut he made before the Second World War. It was commissioned by Anatole Jakovski in 1934. Proof copies of this abstract print are known to exist and Nicholson must have preserved his block as a further reprint was produced by Kestner Gesellschaft in 1962.

Entrance to this intimate exhibition is free thanks to the generosity of its sponsor, De’Longhi. The show runs until 25th June 2017 at Pallant House Gallery, Chichester. Further details of this and the gallery’s other current exhibitions (which are really worth the ticket price) can be found at www.pallant.org.uk.

By Rupert Toovey, a senior director of Toovey’s, the leading fine art auction house in West Sussex, based on the A24 at Washington. Originally published in the West Sussex Gazette.