The Sick Boy [The Doctor's Visit], by Joseph Clark

The Sick Boy [The Doctor's Visit]

Joseph Clark (1834-1926)

c. 1857

Oil on canvas

H 67.3 x W 50.8 cm

Image credit: Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens

Accession no. TWCMS : B10553

Purchased, 1899

Re-used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial licence (CC BY-NC)

[For commentary, see below]

The "sick child" here is a boy looking weak and wan as he sits back on an armchair by the fire, head resting on the pillow behind him, hand on the pages of his book, as a formally dressed man, evidently the doctor visiting him, looks at him questioningly. Behind the chair, and leaning on it, an older woman listens anxiously, while a girl, perhaps a little older than the boy, sits facing him on the other side of the hearth — these would be the boy's mother (James Dafforne thinks she might be his nurse, or, since she looks quite elderly, his grandmother) and sister. A tortoiseshell cat rubs its back against the doctor's leg, suggesting he may be a frequent visitor, or at least has a kindly presence. Dafforne evidently and rightly admires "the vigour with which the figures are presented, their truthful individuality, and the skilful arrangement of light and shade. What is most pleasing here is the subtlety. For example, as he looks across at the three people opposite her, the girl is shown partly from behind, but just enough of her face is seen for it to suggest a solemn concern for the boy. She seems to be mending something, a pair of trousers perhaps. The family is not wealthy, but the room is a comfortable one, with ornaments, pictures, and a grandfather clock. It is a subdued and altogether affecting portrayal of Victorian domesticity at a difficult juncture. — Jacqueline Banerjee

Links to Related Material

Bibliography

Dafforne, James. "British Artists: Their Style and Character, No. LXIII: Joseph Clark." The Art-Journal Vol. 2, issue 15 (March 1863): 49-51. Internet Archive. Web. 21 November 2024. [Whole text on the Victorian Web]

The Sick Child. Art UK. Web. 21 November 2024.

Created 20 November 2024