Mary Linwood Art Exhibit

Jesus Christ: 

This stitching is incredibly done, as is all of Mary Linwood’s incredible art. This rendition of Jesus Christ with his bread and wine is so detailed that it inspires any viewer who looks at the piece. Religion was such a huge thing in the 18th century, and for this piece to be made, and in so much detail just showed how important Christ was to his followers. Particularly with how he is shown with a halo over his head, like he is sent straight from heaven to watch over them. In an article found on Britannica, “The culmination of 18th-century Rationalism was found in the works of the German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724–1804), but his was a rationalism modified to leave room for religion, which he based essentially on ethics. Kant held that all humans, in their awareness of and reverence for the categorical imperative (i.e., the notion that one must act as though what one does can become a universal law), share in the one religion and that the pre-eminence of Christianity lay in the conspicuous way in which Jesus enshrined the moral ideal.” (Britannica 1998). So, while all this new philosophical way of thinking came about, it still made it so that the face of your choices was Jesus Christ watching over you, being a guide to your moral compass. With Mary Linwood creating this piece, it contributed to that ideal and reminded all who saw it to make sure they were still following their Christian duties. 

Napoleon Bonaparte: 

Mary Linwood did a portrait of Napoleon Bonapart himself after she was introduced to him, “In 1808 Talleyrand introduced her to Napoleon, whose portrait she embroidered twice. He wanted her to take her exhibition to Paris but was prevented by the outbreak of war between the two countries. She received the Freedom of Paris from him in 1825 for her portrait of him.” (Janson, 2018). Quite interesting to do something that goes against what your country is fighting for, and it must have been quite controversial at the time. Although Linwood did a great job of separating her art from politics, everyone was so fascinated by her work that it didn’t even matter. 

Self Portrait: 

The self-portrait that Mary Linwood has done is quite incredible to me, in general I am amazed at how well she can do her needle painting, but to do a portrait of yourself, that is quite talented. Others agree with the amount of talent she has with the explanation of her details, “Miss Linwood’s mode is analogous to that of a painter; she first sketches the outline, then the parts in detail, and brings out the whole of the design by degrees. I once saw her at work accoutred as she was with pincushions all round her, stuck with needles, threaded with worsted of every colour, and after having touched the picture with a needle, instead a brush, she would recede five or six paces back to view the effect.” (Janson, 2018). We can all agree that Mary Linwood had some amazing pieces she made, but I would say that her self-portrait is one of her best pieces.