Henry Wallis: The Stone Breaker

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This sombre painting depicts the figure of a man slumped in death. The public and press saw the painting as a justified criticism of the Poor Law, which forced paupers to break sto nes to repair roads in return for food and shelter. When exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1858, instead of a title the painting was accompanied by a catalogue entry quoting Thomas Carlyle's (1795-1881) 'Sartor Resartus': 'Hardly-entreated Brother! For us thy back was so bent, for us were thy straight limbs and fingers so deformed: thou wert our Conscript, on whom the lot fell, and fighting our battles wert so marred. For in thee too lay a god-created Form, but it was not to be unfolded: encrusted must it stand with the thick adhesions and defacements of labour; and thy body, like thy soul, was not to know freedom. [shortcode] [short-description] • Artist: Henry Wallis • Artwork: The Stone Breaker• Date of Work: 1857 [/short-description][/details] [/shortcode] Show more