Maria, from Sterne

This 1777 painting of Maria from Laurence Sterne's novel depicts a character from A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy, published in 1768. Literary subjects from Sterne's immensely popular novels were common in British art, and Wright's interpretation reflects the culture of sensibility that pervaded the late 18th century. Joseph Wright of Derby, the painter of the English Midlands industrial revolution, combined the academic portraiture tradition he had absorbed from Thomas Hudson with an original engagement with the subjects of the new industrial age — the candlelit experiments of natural philosophers, the dramatic illumination of forges and foundries, the eruptions of Vesuvius and the fireworks at Roman festivals. His Orrery and Forge paintings are among the most significant works of the British Enlightenment, combining the scientific curiosity of the age with pictorial ambitions that went beyond mere documentation to achieve images of genuinely poetic power. Working outside London, he created an independent artistic identity rooted in the specific culture and landscape of the English Midlands.

The literary subject is treated with Wright's characteristic attention to emotional expression and atmospheric light, creating a sentimental yet psychologically convincing portrait of the fictional character.