You hear people say that every picture tells a story, that is particularly true when looking at FMB’s pictures. The Artist has his own story to tell in his painting, but the viewer can put his or her own interpretation to it. FMB’s genre paintings fall into roughly four categories: The Huntsmen, The Historical Elizabethans and Stuarts, The Cardinals, and scenes of everyday life. The paintings could be of social subjects, for example bewigged gentlemen having a dinner party, discussing topics of the day, or after dinner discussions over the port and smoking clay pipes in beautifully decorated interiors, or Ladies and Gentlemen having a quite tete a tete over a cup of tea. The following paintings were either oil on canvas or oil on board. Undoubtedly the most famous of FMB’s paintings is ‘The Landlords Story’. It has been reproduced many thousands of times and most surely has been his biggest commercial painting. It is still being reproduced as prints, you only have to look on the internet and you will see website after website selling the print. It is quite understandable why this picture has been so successful: it was superbly painted, each of the figures has a great character and the gestures make you want to join in the conversation, also the depth of the painting takes you right into the courtyard of the Inn. Now you ask what story is the landlord telling, well you tell me, only the artist knew the answer to that story. |
‘The Landlords Story’