Nature's simple plan; a phase of radical thought in the mid-eighteenth century . ce has not only indicated the sweet temperof the savage, but has produced a picture of useas a document and a record. Omai is shown withhis long hair loose over his shoulders, and withtattoo-marks visible on his hands in which he holdsan Otaheitan stool or seat, a bag, and a fan. Heis arrayed in a long robe, elaborately woundabout his shoulders and waist, so as to cover hisbody, with the exception of his forearms, feet,and ankles, which are bare. This, I suppose, wasthe contemporary notion of the way a savageshoul
Nature's simple plan; a phase of radical thought in the mid-eighteenth century . ce has not only indicated the sweet temperof the savage, but has produced a picture of useas a document and a record. Omai is shown withhis long hair loose over his shoulders, and withtattoo-marks visible on his hands in which he holdsan Otaheitan stool or seat, a bag, and a fan. Heis arrayed in a long robe, elaborately woundabout his shoulders and waist, so as to cover hisbody, with the exception of his forearms, feet,and ankles, which are bare. This, I suppose, wasthe contemporary notion of the way a savageshould be represented in art. His is certainly notthe Tahitan costume, of the simplicities of whichwe are, perhaps, sufficiently informed, and whichwould not serve in the rigors of a Londonautumn; neither is it the costume which Omaiwore in England as a rule, for it was found moreconvenient for him to don the conventionalclothes of the day; so he appeared regularly in areddish brown coat, white waistcoat, breeches,and sword—a costume which pleased him and thecentury well Omai. From an engraving by Bartolozzi, after a drawing by Nathaniel Dance. c ANCIENT BARD 77 Sir Joshua Reynolds gives a different pictureof Omai.^ He was impressed by the dignity ofthe young savage, and therefore posed him in aheroic attitude against a fanciful Otaheitan land-scape, which is perhaps the first attempt in thehistory of English art to depict the scenery ofTahiti. He wears the flowing robes and also aturban. Every trace of barbarousness, exceptthe bare feet, is carefully omitted by Reynolds,who has succeeded in lending to the Polynesiansavage the poise and regal aloofness of an could reveal more adequately the traitswhich were sought for in the gentle savage. YetReynoldss picture is true to one side of Omai,for all the testimony with regard to him—and wehave a great deal—constantly emphasizes hiscourtesy and self-restraint under the strange anddifficult conditions into which
Size: 1180px × 2119px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, booksubjectciviliz, bookyear1922
