98 On Painting. 



nierel)' reading Homer fufficient to enable us to defign from 

 that author without any previous hiRorical information. 



He who firrt acquires a knowledge uf geography will not 

 only better underfland hiftory and biography^ but receive a 

 higher relifh for them than had he followed a diifcrent order 

 of reading. What gives us an intereft in ^neas, but our 

 fuppofing him the founder of the mighty empire of Rome ? 

 Otherwile, he becomes a mere robber. 



As all this knowledge cannot be obtained without much 

 attention, we (hall find great advantage refult from making 

 memorandums under their refpeftive heads of the cuttoms, 

 manners, buildings, and other circumftances connefted with, 

 hiftorical painting; by which means we fliall colleft a mafs 

 of information at all times ready to refer to, and that with- 

 out its interfering in the leaft with our prailical ftudies. 

 Lord Bacon juUly obferves, " The proceeding upon fome- 

 what conceived in writing, doth, for the moft part, facilitate 

 difpatch ; for though it fhould be wholly rejcfted, yet that 

 negative is more pregnant of direftion than an indefinite, as 

 aflies are more generative than daft." 



Thofe who propofe to themfolves to purfue the great and 

 arduous tafk of hiftory-painting, fliould be careful to guard 

 againft commencing their career too foon, or before they have 

 obtained a flock fufficient to that end : fome have ftarted with 

 fo flender a capital that it has been confined to colour, chiaro- 

 fcuro, with, now and then, a fuccefsful compofitionj requi- 

 fites that do not fink below the fuperficies. 



The acquirements neceflary to qualify an artift to purfue 

 the great and important part of the art we are treating of, are 

 many : he ihould poflei's a thorough knowledge of the human 

 figure as far as it regards his art, and its attire, with land- 

 fcape, architefture, chiaro-fcuro, and colour: he (liould be 

 well read in hillory, antiquity, and the bell poets ; to 

 which he (liould join a knowledge of pra6lical geometry, 

 Zi the foundation of perfpeftive ; with that part of optics 

 called chromatics, as it explains the colours of light and of 

 natural bodies; and, withal, poflefs a tolerable facility of 

 hand. Nothing can be more difficult than to fill up the 

 character of a preat artift, particularlv if he propofes to raife 

 a juft and lafting reputation ; and, not content, like the ge- 

 nerality t)f the profcifion, to produce trifles, extends his views 

 beyond the prt-fent generation by the cultivation of works 

 that may flouriOi in future ages. To do this, as ucll as the 

 above acquifiiions he (liould be endowed by nature with 

 noble and elevated feniiments; a ready and warm genius to 

 invent, accojnpanied with the greateit coolnefs to arrange : 



penetratioB 



