Bed-Time. John Burr (1834-93), artist. Stephen Miller, engraver. Oil on canvas. Source: 1869 Art-Journal. [Click on image to enlarge it.]
Again, in 1867, Mr. Burr appeared at the Dudley Gallery in a drawing called ‘BED-TIME;’ we have engraved it on this page from a replica of the subject painted by the artist in oils. One cannot reasonably look for novelty of treatment in what may be termed a common incident in the daily life of a Christian community throughout its various ranks and degrees. It has been truly said that “a child praying by its mother's knees is one of the prettiest incidents in Nature and Art;” and in this cottage-interior the subject is simply and perspicuously presented. The child, a sweet-faced little girl, having undergone the accustomed ablutions preparatory to being put to bed, kneels reverently beside her mother to repeat her evening prayer: the group is nicely composed. In the background an elder brother much wearied, perhaps, with keeping watch and ward over the baby in its cradle while the mother has been engaged in her household duties, is already fast asleep, yet in a position not over suggestive of comfortable repose. The figure, however, is very true to nature, for boys, and men also, when tired out, can sleep anyhow and anywhere.
Bibliography
Dafforne, James. "British Artists, Their Style and Character: John Burr," Art Journal (1869): 337-39.
Last modified 26 June 2020