Kyla Hollis, our new Friends of York Art Gallery Research Scholar talks about the work she has been doing so far.

The English Civil War: a sticky subject to be sure, full of upheavals, revelations, and change. Yet, it was this period that gave way to a group of great thinkers, artists, and craftsmen known as the York Virtuosi.

They met often in the Micklegate house of a glass-painter called Henry Gyles and discussed nature, art, science, philosophy, literature, antiquity, and more. They found in each other a mutual appreciation for the world around them and an understanding that the past must be preserved even as England advanced.

Members regularly shared their observations, studies, writings, and artistic endeavours which gave way to successful collaborative efforts. These efforts challenged or more closely examined understandings of the world, especially in regard to nature.

Indeed, it was during this time that artists like Wenceslaus Hollar and Francis Place developed topographical depictions of the countryside and important – if somewhat ruinous – memorials to England’s past. Perhaps, through these depictions, the artists hoped to restore some community pride in local culture and renew appreciation of English heritage – only more research will tell!

Before instagram, snapchat, or Facebook, people received information and images via books and illustrations. In the 17th century, these illustrations often came by way of etching or engraving which could be used for multiple printings.

In Sir William Dugdale’s, Monasticon Anglicanum – a veritable catalogue of England’s historic monasteries, churches, cathedrals, and more – many of the images were etched/engraved by Daniel King or Wenceslaus Hollar and not only depicted the religious buildings, but the varied garb of monks and nuns as well.

The text and the pictures could be printed over and over, spread out across England, and read by anyone who wanted to know more about the country’s ecclesiastical heritage. This method may not have been as quick as a web-search, but for the 1600s it was quite effective!

In the 17th century, collecting antiquities was an important avenue by which to understand the natural world and this knowledge was key to becoming the ideal, virtuous gentleman – a virtuoso. Unfortunately, some virtuosi could find themselves over the edge, landed in the margins of high society and purported as veritable ‘quacks’ obsessed with collecting, cataloguing and philosophising.

Martin Lister, a prominent member of the York Virtuosi, was even satirized in a comic play. Nevertheless, the virtuosi of England stood their ground and were helped significantly by the the founding of the Royal Society of London for the Improvement of Natural Knowledge in 1660.

This backing allowed artists like Wenceslaus Hollar, Daniel King, and Francis Place, to explore the antiquity of England – record the landscapes once trod by Roman feet – and encourage preservation of those ancient or medieval bits still left in English cityscapes.

Why was heraldry so important to those living in the 17th century? According to Henry Peacham, in his The Compleat Gentleman (published 1634), knowing one’s arms not only assisted in determining pedigrees and what great deeds were accomplished by which men, but it also practically helped for identifying friend from foe on the battlefield!

However, English topographical art also benefitted from heraldry, finding its early beginnings in the depictions of familial land holdings and hereditary monuments. In fact, Daniel King and Wenceslaus Hollar were trained as a heralds, as can be seen in their depictions of the York Minster, illustrating the importance even non-noble artists placed on knowledge of the elite families. Nonetheless, heraldry was not the sole method of achieving a gentlemanly status.

As William Pestell, a rector of Coleorton, Leicestershire stated, “I have no pedigree nor coate of armes nor ever had, nor do I pretend to any, nor am I ambitious to be blazond for any things but honesty & loyalty…I am a Master of Artes & that makes me a gentleman” (Styles, 1978).