'Framing Disability exhibition' Thomas Inglefield (born 1769) (tactile)
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- Synopsis
- Etching with stipple; 1804; 17 cm by 11.6 cm; published by R S Kirby, London on 22 December 1804. This portrait of Thomas Inglefield depicts him as an artist, sat at his work table with his drawing materials around him. A further portrait of him (held by the Wellcome Library, London) from 1787 is etched by Inglefield himself, and is important as the subject plays a part in depicting his own disability. The caption included in this portrait states that: This extraordinary young man was born December. 18. 1769, at Hook, in Hampshire, without arms or legs, as here delineated, occasioned as his mother supposes by a fright she suffered when pregnant with him.' ˜Maternal imagination' was then a commonly held explanation for disability - a pregnant woman seeing a shocking or disturbing sight may give birth to a disabled child. Inglefield was an accomplished artist and engraver. The caption continues to elucidate: he has by industry acquired the arts of writing and drawing, holding his pencil between the stump of his left arm and his cheek & guiding it with the muscles of his mouth.' Like many people exhibiting themselves in the 18th century, Inglefield showed himself privately - in rooms at 8, Chapel Street, off Tottenham Court Road, London, ˜where ladies and gentlemen may see him and many more of his performances'. These prints would have been sold on the premises where he demonstrated his artistic skills to the public and presumably Thomas received a percentage of profits. Many people, including members of the Royal Society, collected disabled people's work for their private collections. In this print we see Inglefield at the age of 20 (according to the caption), dressed in what were probably his best clothes, a ruffled shirt, buttoned jerkin and breeches. Inglefield's clothes would have been specially tailored for his body, but this was the norm in the 18th century. ˜Off the peg' clothing was then a rarity except in large cities and towns, and working-class households made their own clothing. These portraits of Inglefield as creator and artist clearly demonstrate that he is a working man, not solely an exhibit, earning his living by writing, drawing and etching. Description of portrait Thomas is sitting on a raised platform with his head turned slightly to the left. He has a well-proportioned face with his shoulder length hair tied back with a bow in a ponytail that sits on his left shoulder. His breeches cover the stumps of his legs that are shown wide apart. He wears a buttoned jerkin over a ruffled shirt that is tied at the neck. The stumps of his arms, missing from just below the elbow, show below the short sleeves of the jerkins and the cuffs of the shirt. His left arm is held down by his left side bent slightly inwards. His right arm rests on an angled drawing board that has a sheet of paper on showing the portrait of a man. The drawing board is placed on a small circular pedestal table that is just behind the raised platform. On the table, next to the drawing boards, is a drawing implement and a smaller sheet of paper. To the left of Thomas's face and above the drawing board, is another sheet of paper with a sketch on it pinned to the wall. Tactile image details The tactile image is nearly twice the size of the actual etching. Thick lines outline the figure. Three textures show the clothes - one for the breeches, one for the jerkin and one for the shirt. The shirt texture also shows the raised platform. Solid texture shows the table, drawing board, buttons on jerkin, bow in hair and facial features. Thinner lines show the hair and the outline edge of sheet of paper on the drawing board. The sheet of paper pinned to the wall and the small sheet of paper and drawing implement on the table have been omitted.
- Copyright:
- 2011
Book Details
- Book Quality:
- Excellent
- Publisher:
- RNIB
- Date of Addition:
- 05/26/17
- Copyrighted By:
- RNIB
- Adult content:
- No
- Language:
- English
- Has Image Descriptions:
- No
- Categories:
- Health, Mind and Body
- Submitted By:
- Ian Green
- Proofread By:
- N/A
- Usage Restrictions:
- This is a copyrighted book.