Artwork
Patience
Patience is a watercolor work on paper by the Post-Impressionist artist Unknown. It dates from 1900 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
Patience is a watercolour depicting a figure from a theatrical performance. The artwork combines pencil, watercolour, and gouache, with an ink inscription.
Subject & Meaning
The painting shows Henry Lytton as Bunthorne, a character from the opera Patience, which premiered at the Savoy Theatre in 1881. Lytton is seated, holding a book, and dressed in an elaborate, antiquated outfit.
Technique & Style
The artist achieved a sense of depth and realism through the use of small brushstrokes, capturing the shadows and folds in the subject's clothing. The colour palette is muted, evoking the appearance of aged stage curtains.
History & Provenance
The artwork is annotated with an inscription in ink by W.S. Gilbert, the librettist of Patience. The piece is related to the opera's 1881 production at the Savoy Theatre.
Artist & collection
Domestic Scene
Giacomo and Cardinal Marco, investing Andrea, Abbot of San Zeno, with his Benefice
The Nymph of Fontainebleau
Portrait of a Woman
Madonna and Child with Saints in the Enclosed Garden
Venus and Minerva
Family Group of Four on Sofa
Wall painting from Room H of the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale
