Taste - Thomas Rowlandson

A satirical etching by Thomas Rowlandson from 1801, mocking the pretension of collectors and the contemporary obsession with exotic antiquities.

Published in April 1801 by Rudolph Ackermann, this etching captures the biting wit of Thomas Rowlandson, a master of British caricature. The composition depicts two men examining a grotesque statue, which the speaker identifies as a Chinese 'Gofs' or deity. The dialogue, inscribed at the top of the print, mocks the contemporary obsession with collecting exotic antiquities, a trend that often led to the acquisition of objects misunderstood by their owners. Rowlandson employs his characteristic line work to exaggerate the physical features of the figures. The two men, dressed in the fashion of the early nineteenth century, peer at the statue with a mixture of confusion and self-importance. One man holds a magnifying glass, a visual device Rowlandson uses to ridicule the pretension of the connoisseur. The statue itself is rendered with a heavy, distorted face and a body covered in pseudo-oriental symbols, reflecting the era's superficial engagement with non-Western art forms. The humour lies in the contrast between the men's intellectual posturing and their complete lack of genuine understanding regarding the object before them. By placing the statue on a plinth in a domestic setting, the artist comments on the social performance of taste among the British middle and upper classes. The etching style is clean and direct, typical of the collaborative output between Rowlandson and the publisher Ackermann, who were instrumental in the development of the satirical print market in London. This work remains a sharp observation of social vanity and the often absurd nature of collecting habits during the Georgian period.