We haven’t spent much time in the west end of London. We were going to an exhibition at the Royal Academy which is in the west end so we went early to spend a bit of time strolling and in Scott’s case, do some shopping.

Below Piccadilly Circus

Scott went into Shackleton, an outdoor expedition store that sells outdoor adventure wear clothing as well as expeditions.

The expeditions are related to Ernest Shakleton’s expeditions. They are in the Arctic area and Antarctica. The Antarctica expedition to the south pole costs £100,000. The Midnight Sun Challenge is a bargain at £9,000.

The Royal Academy is a few blocks away.

This is the first exhibition in the UK of paintings by Michaelina Wautier, a 17th century painter, who was only recently “discovered”. Not a lot is known about her biography including when she was born, likely 1614, in what is now Belgium, then the Spanish Netherlands. No record of her birth survives and records of her death including her will were destroyed by battles in the region in the 17th century. She died in 1689.

She is one of a few women who made a career of painting in the 17th century. She never married and had no children which probably allowed her the time to pursue a career as an artist. Below is her self portrait.

Her older brother Charles was also a painter and likely she trained with him as it was difficult for women to receive training. His career as a painter is part of the reason Michaelina was later not well known as people assumed her paintings were done by him, even though she signed her paintings with her initials, which were not the same as his.

She painted in almost all genres included portraits and history paintings, which were thought not appropriate for women because they were too difficult as they were not just “copying” which was what still life painting was considered. Portraits were thought to require skill to accurately portray faces but Michaelina painted portraits from early in her career.

She also painted history paintings with religious and mythological subjects. History paintings were thought to require a level of invention beyond the capabilities of women. Michaelina signed her history paintings as “invented and created by” which seems to show she was aware she was going against the beliefs of her time.

Some paintings were done together with her brother. It was not an uncommon practice to collaborate with other artists at the time. The siblings shared a studio in Brussels. Below is one work, The Calling of Matthew, that art historians now think was painted by both Michaelina and Charles. The young man and Jesus are thought to be by Michaelina’s hand.

The young man looks a lot like a different painting done by her of St John the Evangelist.

Her masterpiece is a huge mythological painting that includes a self portrait as the woman on the right. At the time it was shocking for a woman to paint male nudes.

Five paintings about the five senses were only discovered in 2019 and are on exhibition for the first time.

The glass stairs at the Royal Academy were a bit challenging for me to navigate given my vertigo.

We had a bit of tea and ginger beer in the courtyard cafe.

Explored but did not buy anything at Fortnum and Masons.

Dinner was at The Wolseley Piccadilly which is a French bistro-like spot.

Coq au vin

Veal chop

Waddled our way from dinner to the Embankment tube station, which is about a mile away, and took the tube back to our apartment. Big Ben was shining in the evening light.