Watercolors and drawings by master artists that depict life or the artistic process in the 18th century will be featured in the Yale Center for British Art's newest exhibition, which opens on Thursday, May 17.

William Blake, John Singleton Copley, Allan Ramsay, Joseph Wright of Derby, Thomas Chippendale, J.M.W. Turner, Paul Sandby and George Stubbs are among the artists represented in "The Line of Beauty: British Watercolors and Drawings from the Eighteenth Century." The exhibition will be on view through Sept. 2.

The works in the exhibition range from large-scale watercolors to informal sketches intended for private use and enjoyment. They will be grouped into thematic sections devoted to portraiture; landscape; metropolitan and rural life; architecture and town planning; literature and history; travel and exploration; science and natural history; and the artist
at work. Drawing manuals and instructional art literature of the period will also be featured.

"The Line of Beauty" celebrates the richness and diversity of the Yale Center for British Art's holdings, which are rivaled only by the national collections in London, according to Scott Wilcox, curator of prints and drawings, who organized the exhibit with Gillian Forrester, assistant curator of prints and drawings.

Wilcox says "The Line of Beauty" will work on three levels. "First, it will be a display of masterworks -- over 100 of the most beautiful watercolors and drawings from an extraordinarily rich collection of works on paper," he explains. "At the same time, the exhibition will examine the professional and social roles played by draftsmanship during the period. Lastly, through its arrangement into illuminating thematic and contextual groups, it will provide a series of windows on different aspects of 18th-century life in Britain."

In Britain, the 18th century witnessed the birth of many social, cultural and political forms and institutions that still define our world today, Wilcox notes. "The Line of Beauty" explores the role of drawing in this changing world.

"The arts, or 'the Pleasures of the Imagination,' as they were often described, flourished during the 18th century, which was an extraordinary period of tumultuous change and unprecedented expansion," says Wilcox. "As a result, the modern notion of 'high culture,' encompassing theater, music, literature and the visual arts, came into being. In this dynamic and thriving cultural environment, the practice of drawing, among both professional artists and amateurs, played an important role. The influential philosopher David Hume noted, 'The spirit of the age affects all the arts; and the minds of men, being once roused from their lethargy and put into fermentation, turn themselves on all sides, and carry improvements into every art and science.'"

During the month of June, the center will offer a series of special programs in conjunction with both the exhibit and the International Festival of Arts and Ideas. These include a talk on how Britain was transformed in the 18th century; a dramatic reading of 18th-century prose and poetry on the theme of the conflict between town and country; a talk about the role of drawing at that time; a concert by the Four Nations Ensemble featuring music by 18th-century composers Handel and Haydn; a tour of the Lewis Walpole Library in Farmington, the former home of Wilmarth Sheldon Lewis and his wife, Annie Burr Lewis, who collected 18th-century works centered on Horace Walpole; and a series of films that focus on life in 18th-century Britain, including "Tom Jones" and "Barry Lyndon." Further information on these events will appear
in a future issue of the Yale Bulletin &
Calendar.

The Yale Center for British Art, located at 1080 Chapel St., is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. The museum is closed on Mondays. Admission is free. For a recorded listing of weekly museum events, call (203) 432-2800 or visit the center's website at www.yale.edu/ycba.

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