The anatomy of laugh. English caricature of 18th-the first third of the 19th century
State museum-reserve Tsaritsyno, Bread House
Moscow, Russia
Author of exposition: Agniya Sterligova
Photo: Dmitry Chebanenko
Project implementation: 1:1
This is the first-ever large-scale exhibition of the caricatures of English artists, who are considered to have founded the genre. The core of the exhibition was the unique collection of the Russian State Archive of Social Political History (RGASPI), it premiered in its entirety to the public.
The 13 rooms of the exhibition showcased over 200 graphic works on a variety of topics. English caricature not only entertained and amused, but also castigated vice and praised heroes, protected public morals and defied conventional ways of society, formulated the national idea and created the image of the enemy, served the purposes of political propaganda and united the nation in the face of a threat. The works by the best artists, such as James Gillray, Thomas Rowlandson, George Cruickshank and others, date to the so-called golden age of English caricature. The exhibition also displays around 30 objects of XVIII – beginning of XX centuries: full-dress portraits of the people pictured in the caricatures, ceramics and textiles with satirical stories, including traditional English Toby jugs.