1142 - James MacArdell after Anthonis van Dyck, “Time Clipping the Wings of Cupid”, allegory

James MacArdell after Anthonis van Dyck, “Time Clipping the Wings of Cupid”, allegory (1728/1729 Dublin – 1765 London), mezzotint on paper, manière noire, inscribed below the image “Ant. Van Dyck Eques Pinx.” and “Ja. McArdell Fec.” as well as “From the Original in the Collection of His Grace the Duke of Marlborough at Blenheim.”, after the work by Anthonis van Dyck, allegorical scene of Time as a winged old man clipping the wings of the infant god of love with a pair of scissors, scythe, skull and arrows in the foreground, condition commensurate with age, stained, creased, backed area at the lower margin with frayed tear, edge defects, image 46x35.5 cm (HxW), sheet size 51x37.5 cm (HxW) James MacArdell was born in Dublin at the end of 1728 or the beginning of 1729 and trained under John Brooks, who had been working there in mezzotint since 1741. In 1746 he went with Brooks to London, where he produced numerous mezzotint portraits after paintings, including from 1754 a total of 38 plates after Sir Joshua Reynolds. After Anthonis van Dyck he engraved, among others, the double portrait of the Duke of Buckingham and his brother (1752) and the portrait of the Countess of Southampton (1758). He exhibited the sheet “Time clipping the Wings of Love” after van Dyck at the Society of Artists in 1760. MacArdell died in London on 1 June 1765 and was buried in Hampstead.