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paintings techniques of the past masters, rather than the fa ddish disregard fo r

tradition prevalent among his contemporaries.

Conclusion

In seeking reform, Hunt sought not to stop the wheels of progress but to

channel them. His advocacy fo r the rights of the consumers in a time of

rampant laissez-faire capitalism had ramifications throughout his century and

our own, contributing directly to the enactment of regulations governing the

safety of commercial goods and legislation regarding truth in advertising. His

sophisticated understanding of the science of painting, in spite of limited

fo rmal schooling, and the impact of environment in the preservation of art

place him as a key figure in the development in the professions of art con­

servation and museology. His understanding of historic painting techniques,

well advanced fo r his day as well as our own, generated a revival of the craft

of painting after a generation notorious fo r technical inadequacies. To o often

he has been dismissed by art historians as a minor painter of deeply tasteless

religious scenes. His contribution to nineteenth-century British painting and

to the current stability of commercial artists' materials must not be underes­

timated.

Acknowledgments

The author wishes to thank Kate Olivier (Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University)

for having encouraged the undertaking of this research; Jacqueline Ridge (National

Museums and Galleries on Merseyside, Liverpool), Zahira Veliz (private practice, Lon­

don), and David Bomford (National Gallery, London) for facilitating research in Brit­

ain;Judith Bronkhurst (Witt Library, Courtauld Institute, London) and Leslie Carlyle

(Canadian Conservation Institute, Ottawa) for their valuable insights into nineteenth­

century British art and techniques; and the staff of the following institutions for

generous access to curatorial and conservation files pertaining to William Holman

Hunt: Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Wadsworth Atheneum, Hart­

ford, Connecticut; Tate Gallery, London; Courtauld Institute of Art, London; Guild­

hall Art Gallery, London; Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool; Lady Lever Art Gallery, Port

Sunlight; Manchester City Art Galleries, Manchester; Birmingham Museums and Art

Gallery, Birmingham; and the Roberson Archives, Hamilton Kerr Institute, Cam­

bridge University, Cambridge.

Notes

1. Har ley, R. D. 1970. Artists' Pigments c. 16 00- 18 35: A Study in English Documentary
   Sources. London: Butterworth Scientific. Also, Gettens, R., and G. Stout, 1966.
   Painting Materials: A Short Encyclopaedia. New York: Dover Publications, Inc.


2. Bomford, D., et al. 1990. Art in the Making: Impressionism. London: The National
   Gallery.


3. Standage, H. C.,1886. The Artists' Manual of Pigments showing their Composition:
   Conditions of Permanency, Non-Permanency, and Adulterations; Effects in Combination
   with Each Other and with Vehicles; and the Most Reliable Tests of Purity .... Lon­
   don: Crosby, Lockwood & Co.


4. Standage, op. cit., 53-54.
   5. A Pre-Raphaelite Friendship : The Correspondence of William Holman Hunt and John
   Lucas Tupper, no. 114 (11 August 1875). 1986. Eds. J. H. Coombs, et al. Ann
   Arbor, Michigan: UMI Research Press, 20l.
   6. Hunt, W H. 1880. The Present System of Obtaining Materials In Use By Artist
   Painters, As Compared With That of the Old Masters. Journal of the Society of
   Arts 28 (23 April 1880), 492.


5. Hunt, op. cit, 492.


6. Ibid., 493.


7. Ibid.


8. Hamerton, P. G. 1875. Technical Notes-W Holman Hunt, an interview with
   the artist. The Porifolio: An Artistic Periodical VI (1):45.


9. Original paint extends over onto the tacking margins of the lining canvas and
   the gummed tape edging the lining of the Birmingham Finding of the Saviour in
   the Temple. Conservation files, Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery.


10. Hamerton, op. cit., 45.

Historical Painting Tech niques, Materials, and Studio Practice