Online Collections at UoB - Objects
ID number: BIRBI-44.8 Institution: The Barber Institute of Fine Arts Artist / Maker: Leech, John (1817-1864) Title / Object name: Mr Briggs contemplates a day's fishing Object type: Print
Culture: British Materials: Hand-coloured etching Measurements: 240 x 299 mm
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Fishing was seen as a means of escaping urban congestion, offering the working man relaxation. Mr Briggs’s front-room construction of this contemplative sport is rather more frenetic, as his line knocks candlesticks, picture frames and vases from the mantel piece. Briggs’s shocked wife and children look on at his frenzy, as a painting of a fish smiles mockingly down at him. Leech saw himself as a family man, and built up a repertoire for the day-to-day wit of the Victorian home.
Inscriptions / Translations: Signed lower left: J. Leech
Notes: A slightly different version was published in 'Punch', XIX, 1850, p. 78, and another version was reproduced in colour and published by Bradbury & Evans.
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