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Mr. Garrick as Richard the Third

April 18, 1772
Not on view
Dixon's mezzotint portrays David Garrick as Richard III at Bosworth Field, unhorsed and soon to fall to the army of Henry Tudor, earl of Richmond. Based on a 1771 painting by Dance-Holland (Town Hall, Stratford-upon-Avon), the image conveys the king's bravery as a soldier at the end of a reign marked by heartless cruelty and manipulation. Garrick famously abandoned a bombastic acting style, formerly the norm, for greater naturalism, and developed a complex presentation of Richard over his long career.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Mr. Garrick as Richard the Third
  • Engraver: John Dixon (Irish, Dublin ca. 1740–1811 London)
  • Artist: After Nathaniel Dance-Holland (British, London 1735–1811 Winchester)
  • Publisher: John Boydell (British, Dorrington, Shropshire 1720–1804 London)
  • Sitter: David Garrick (British, Hereford 1717–1779 London)
  • Subject: William Shakespeare (British, Stratford-upon-Avon 1564–1616 Stratford-upon-Avon)
  • Date: April 18, 1772
  • Medium: Mezzotint; second state
  • Dimensions: 25 1/4 x 15 7/8 in. (64.1 x 40.3 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1953
  • Object Number: 53.600.1843
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

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