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The Wrestlers

The Wrestlers is an oil painting by English artist William Etty, painted around 1840 in the life class of the Royal Academy. It depicts a wrestling match between a black man and a white man, both glistening with sweat and under an intense light that emphasises their musculature. Etty was best known for his paintings of nude or near-nude women in historical and mythological settings but had also painted men involved in various forms of combat. At that time, sports were becoming increasingly popular, and the painting is both a reflection of this trend and a part of the English tradition of copying poses from classical Hellenistic works. It was also a time of change in the British attitude to race relations. In this period Etty often made a conscious effort to illustrate moral lessons in his work, and it is not clear whether he chose the topic as a form of social commentary or simply because the contrast between the dark and pale flesh tones was visually striking. The Wrestlers, as part of a private collection, was not seen publicly from about 1849 until 1947, when it was put on sale and purchased by the York Art Gallery, where it remains. (Full article...)

Did you know...

New Hurley Reformed Church in 2013
New Hurley Reformed Church in 2013
  • ... that New York's New Hurley Reformed Church (pictured) was founded by members of another area church who were cut off from their building after a flood washed out a bridge?
  • ... that Vice Premier Chen Muhua, one of China's top women politicians, was forced to give away her daughter and did not reunite with her until three decades later?
  • ... that India is celebrating 26 November as Constitution Day as part of the 125th birth anniversary celebrations for Dr. B. R. Ambedkar?
  • ... that Jan McFarlane, the Archdeacon of Norwich, worked with deaf children before being ordained?
  • ... that one of the Brunei Museum exhibits consists of replicas of the suits of armour and weapons used in Japan from the 8th to 14th centuries?
  • ... that Priscilla Chan and her husband Mark Zuckerberg pledged to donate 99 percent of their Facebook shares, valued at $45 billion, to their charitable foundation?
  • ... that Srimanthudu became the second-biggest Telugu film opener of the year, with a first-day global gross of 310 million?
  • ... that while working on her graduate degree in chemistry, Emīlija Gudriniece won the Latvian Women's Motorcycle Championship in 1949, and then won it again in 1953?

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Soyuz TMA-19M
Soyuz TMA-19M

On this day...

December 20

Cardiff City Hall
Cardiff City Hall

Today's featured picture

Historic Michigan Boulevard District

Century-old buildings of the Historic Michigan Boulevard District stand near East Monroe Street and Millennium Park in Chicago, Illinois. These include the Monroe Building (1910), University Club (1907), Chicago Athletic Club (1893), Willoughby Tower (1927), and Montgomery Ward (1897). Behind them is the Legacy Tower, a 72-story skyscraper by the architectural firm Solomon, Cordwell, and Buenz, which was built in 2009.

Photograph: Diego Delso

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