A Closer Look at Blue Boy

From 2017-2020, Gainsborough’s iconic painting ‘The Blue Boy’ (in the collection of the Huntington Art Museum, California) underwent a major conservation treatment and technical examination. 
The project brought to light new information about the painting’s history and revealed the brilliancy of Gainsborough’s palette, long hidden under layers of cloudy varnish and overpaint. 
Join that project’s co-curators, Christina O’Connell, Senior Paintings Conservator, and Melinda McCurdy, Curator of British Art, from the Huntington Art Museum, as they discuss the painting’s treatment and how it contributes to our understanding of Gainsborough’s masterpiece.

Image: Detail from Project Blue Boy. The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California