"Friday"

Engraved by W H Boucher after a picture by Walter Dendy Sadler.
Size 17 x 28 inches (approx 43 x 71 cms.)

Walter Dendy Sadler specialised in depictions of religious life, often portraying scenes from previous centuries. These religious subjects were not exempt from the light-hearted approach that characterised Sadlers work, and this monastic banquet, with a Dominican order entertaining a pair of Franciscan friars, is shown in a delightfully amusing style. Traditionally, Friday has been considered a day of fasting in the Christian week, with all meat to be avoided in commemoration of Christs crucifixion. The Franciscans, in particular, were renowned for the strictness of the rules imposed in many of their monasteries; yet Sadler here allows himself a gentle dig at the monastic orders, suggesting that, while the monks are keeping to the letter of the law in their feast, the jovial atmosphere of the endeavour is perhaps less sober than might have been intended. This painting dates to 1883, and forms a pair with Thursday, which shows a group of monks fishing for their Friday meal. The latter was executed three years before this work; one of Henry Tates first acquisitions, it remains on display at Londons Tate Gallery. This piece, however, quickly became the better known of the pair, and remains one of the most popular exhibits at Liverpools prestigious Walker Art Gallery.