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JAMES GILLRAY. A Voluptuary Under the Horrors of Digestion

A Voluptuary Under the Horrors of Digestion. Artist: James Gillray (British, Chelsea 1756-1815 London). Dimensions: sheet: 14 3/8 x 11 9/16 in. (36.5 x 29.3 cm). Publisher: Hannah Humphrey (London). Date: July 2, 1792.
Gillray's famously brutal caricature of George, Prince of Wales encapsulates the effects of uncontrolled self-indulgence upon the heir to the British throne. Sprawled in his chair after a lavish meal, the prince picks his teeth with a meat fork; his lack of gentility is underscored by the over-flowing chamber pot at his elbow used to anchor unpaid bills. Just thirty years old, his accumulated ailments can be inferred from remedies piled at right - pills and potions to treat "stinking breath", "piles" (hemorrhoids), venereal disease and poor digestion. A portrait on the wall suggests a more effective remedy - depicting Luigi Carnarro, a Venetian nobleman whose life was famously saved by going on a strict diet. By including "Voluptuary" in the title, Gillray invoked contemporary worries that traditional British masculine virtues were being enervated by a culture obsessed with luxury.

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Author: JAMES GILLRAY (1756-1815)

Title: A Voluptuary Under the Horrors of Digestion

Caption: A Voluptuary Under the Horrors of Digestion. Artist: James Gillray (British, Chelsea 1756-1815 London). Dimensions: sheet: 14 3/8 x 11 9/16 in. (36.5 x 29.3 cm). Publisher: Hannah Humphrey (London). Date: July 2, 1792. Gillray's famously brutal caricature of George, Prince of Wales encapsulates the effects of uncontrolled self-indulgence upon the heir to the British throne. Sprawled in his chair after a lavish meal, the prince picks his teeth with a meat fork; his lack of gentility is underscored by the over-flowing chamber pot at his elbow used to anchor unpaid bills. Just thirty years old, his accumulated ailments can be inferred from remedies piled at right - pills and potions to treat "stinking breath", "piles" (hemorrhoids), venereal disease and poor digestion. A portrait on the wall suggests a more effective remedy - depicting Luigi Carnarro, a Venetian nobleman whose life was famously saved by going on a strict diet. By including "Voluptuary" in the title, Gillray invoked contemporary worries that traditional British masculine virtues were being enervated by a culture obsessed with luxury.

Technique/material: Hand-colored etching

Museum: Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA

Publisher: Hannah Humphrey (London)

Credit: Album

Image size: 3135 × 3893 px | 34.9 MB

Print size: 26.5 × 33.0 cm | 1234.3 × 1532.7 in (300 dpi)

Keywords: DRAWINGS AND PRINTS • ETCHING • EUROPE • HAND-COLORED ETCHING • HANNAH HUMPHREY (LONDON) • JAMES GILLRAY • METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK, USA • PRINTS • UNITED KINGDOM