Fine Art Poster
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A giclée print on 200gsm matte fine art paper, using a twelve-colour process for accurate, fade-resistant colour. Supplied unframed, delivered flat or rolled.
Auction of Relics at Avignon - Thomas Rowlandson
Regular price
$29.00 USD
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$29.00 USD
Regular price
Archival giclée
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Description
A satirical etching by Thomas Rowlandson depicting a chaotic auction of religious relics, published in 1818 for Ackermann's Repository of Arts.
This etching by Thomas Rowlandson, titled Auction of Relics at Avignon, was published in February 1818 for Rudolph Ackermann's Repository of Arts. Rowlandson, a prolific British caricaturist, frequently turned his satirical gaze toward the social and religious customs of the Continent. In this scene, he depicts a chaotic auction room where various religious artefacts are being sold to a motley crowd of bidders.
The composition is crowded, typical of Rowlandson's style, with an auctioneer positioned on a raised platform at the left, gavel in hand. Behind him, a cabinet labelled 'Collection of Relics' displays the items under scrutiny. The room is filled with a diverse array of figures, ranging from monks and nuns to secular gentlemen in top hats, all caught in various states of agitation, greed, or confusion. The artist employs his characteristic fluid line work, combined with a muted watercolour wash, to define the exaggerated facial expressions and gestures of the participants.
Rowlandson's work often functioned as social commentary, and here he mocks the commercialisation of religious items. The absurdity of the situation is amplified by the varied reactions of the crowd, from the man gesturing wildly in the centre to the seated figures examining their catalogues. The architectural setting, with its simple arches and columns, provides a neutral backdrop that allows the focus to remain on the human drama unfolding in the foreground. This print offers a glimpse into the satirical culture of early 19th-century Britain, where such caricatures were widely circulated and enjoyed for their wit and observational humour.
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Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
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Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
Complete The Look
Auction of Relics at Avignon - Thomas Rowlandson
Regular price
From $29.00 USD
Sale price
From $29.00 USD
Regular price
Fine Art Poster / A4 (21x29.7 cm) / -
Artist Biography
Thomas Rowlandson
Rowlandson inherited seven thousand pounds from his aunt and gambled it away. He was known to sit at gaming tables for thirty-six hours at a stretch. The loss is the reason he produced over ten thousand drawings and prints in his lifetime: the volume had more to do with debts than with artistic ambition.
He trained at the Royal Academy Schools in London and may have spent time in Paris, though the often-quoted two years at a Parisian academy has been narrowed by recent scholarship to a few weeks at most. His technique was fast, fluent, and populated by figures who bulge, lurch, stumble and grope their way through Georgian England. The line is always in motion. Fat men eat. Thin women flirt. Horses rear. Coaches overturn. The world in a Rowlandson drawing is always on the verge of falling over.
He drew for the satirical press, illustrated books (including the Dr Syntax series, which sold well enough to keep him solvent for several years), and produced erotica for a private clientele that was never published in his lifetime. Unlike James Gillray, whose satire was ferocious and politically targeted, Rowlandson's humour was broader and warmer. He drew human beings as comic animals: vain, greedy, amorous and fundamentally absurd.
His subjects included Vauxhall Gardens, the races at Brighton, country fairs, and the particular chaos of London streets. He drew the city as a place where everyone is either trying to sell something, steal something, or seduce someone, often simultaneously. He died in 1827, aged seventy, having drawn everything he saw and gambled most of what he earned.
He trained at the Royal Academy Schools in London and may have spent time in Paris, though the often-quoted two years at a Parisian academy has been narrowed by recent scholarship to a few weeks at most. His technique was fast, fluent, and populated by figures who bulge, lurch, stumble and grope their way through Georgian England. The line is always in motion. Fat men eat. Thin women flirt. Horses rear. Coaches overturn. The world in a Rowlandson drawing is always on the verge of falling over.
He drew for the satirical press, illustrated books (including the Dr Syntax series, which sold well enough to keep him solvent for several years), and produced erotica for a private clientele that was never published in his lifetime. Unlike James Gillray, whose satire was ferocious and politically targeted, Rowlandson's humour was broader and warmer. He drew human beings as comic animals: vain, greedy, amorous and fundamentally absurd.
His subjects included Vauxhall Gardens, the races at Brighton, country fairs, and the particular chaos of London streets. He drew the city as a place where everyone is either trying to sell something, steal something, or seduce someone, often simultaneously. He died in 1827, aged seventy, having drawn everything he saw and gambled most of what he earned.
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The same fine art print in a solid wood frame with UV-protective acrylic glaze and rigid backing. Five frame colours. Arrives ready to hang.
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