George Stubbs: 50 Chapters Of An Imagined Biography

This
biography of George Stubbs, leading eighteenth century English animal painter, is "imagined", because
virtually nothing is known of
his character or private life. Historian Merritt Abrash
has combined his knowledge of eighteenth century with the facts of Stubbs' artistic career and the
evidence of his paintings, in order
to create stories providing insights into
the kind of man the artist might have been. The fifty stories consist of
episodes, imaginary but not impossible, which present Stubbs at different
moments of life, from the confidence, strivings and adventures of youth to the
doubts, fears and deeper understandings of old age. His interactions with fellow artists--Gainsborough, Reynolds,
Turner, Blake and others less famous--are often contentious, and encounters
with prominent contemporaries such as Dr. Johnson, Gibbon, Wesley and Smith
take surprising turns. Stories dealing with his independent-minded common-law
wife, their son and personal friends reveal Stubbs experiencing both joy and
grief.' His character emerges
as centered on the conviction that truth is
to be found in the
rationally observed factuality of life, yet occurrences in some episodes prove to be beyond factual explanation, leading
him instead to unexpected spiritual insights.