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Upgrade your walls with Horse Attacked by a Lion - George Stubbs - Oil Painting. Every wildlife reproduction is painted entirely by hand, so the surface carries the depth and variation of an original oil painting rather than the flatness of a digital canvas print.
1769
Enamel on copper
Tate Britain, England.
Stubbs was obsessed with the subject of a lion attacking a horse, making at least seventeen works on the theme, most of which were in oil on regularly-shaped canvas. In this enamel on copper piece, Stubbs cut off the corners to form an irregular octagon, thus tightening the composition. The result is a forceful depiction which is perhaps his most successful treatment of the theme. This is Stubbs's earliest known experiment in painting in enamel colours, and was the first time the technique - previously limited to decorative objects and miniature portraits - was used by an artist of Stubbs's stature. He may have approached the medium out of scientific curiosity, although his exact reasons are not known. Before producing this piece, Stubbs spent two years studying the chemical changes to colours under high temperatures, and a further three years improving the support upon which the painting would be made. He used a copper plate support for this work, but was dissatisfied with the size limitations, and for later enamels commissioned the Master Potter Josiah Wedgwood to produce special large ceramic tablets.
In preparation for the work, he made many studies of caged lions at the Tower of London and at Lord Shelbourne's menagerie on Hounslow Heath. Stubbs's interest in the subject is traditionally presumed to originate from a scene he reportedly witnessed in North Africa during his return by sea from Italy. This was largely disproven, however, with the reappearance of an oil painting Stubbs made of the subject, Horse Devoured by a Lion, in which the horse is pressed to the ground. It differs from all other known versions of the work, but is strikingly similar to a Roman copy of a Greek sculpture group that Stubbs could have seen at the Palazzo dei Conservatori in Rome in 1754.
The innovative subject proved popular and influential. It allowed Stubbs to demonstrate his virtuosity as an animal and landscape painter, while enabling him, through his reference to a classical source, to elevate animal painting to history painting. The horse's noble submission to his inevitable fate suggests the heroic, moral overtones of stoical Roman virtue.
Our artists reproduce this wildlife composition in oil on canvas by hand, preserving the tonal range that makes wildlife oil painting so sought after for a dining room.
This is a genuine hand painted oil painting, not a canvas print. Our painters match the palette of Horse Attacked by a Lion by eye and build up the wildlife forms in thin layers, which is what gives the finished wildlife oil painting its luminosity.
Hang this wildlife oil painting above a sofa, console, or bed to give a dining room an instant focal point. Its timeless palette works with both minimalist and period interiors, and the piece also makes a considered gift for housewarmings, weddings, and art lovers.
Order Horse Attacked by a Lion as a hand painted oil painting on canvas and add lasting timeless character to your dining room. Custom sizes, a digital proof before dispatch, and secure worldwide shipping are included.
| Size | Price |
|---|---|
| 20 X 24 in | $77.98 |
| 24 X 36 in | $120.48 |
| 30 X 40 in | $166.48 |
| 36 X 48 in | $221.48 |
| 48 X 72 in | $430.48 |
The sizes shown are the reproduction canvas sizes we paint to order. The dimensions given in a work's description refer to the original artwork and will differ from the sizes offered here. Not sure? Read the size guide or e-mail us.
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Every canvas is painted by hand in oils on artist-grade stretched canvas, with an extra blank border left for framing. How to care for your painting.
Measurements are on the size guide, or e-mail [email protected] and we reply within one business day.
