A Death in Cornwall

“Gabriel’s enormous body of work included paintings by Bellini, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, Caravaggio, Canaletto, Rembrandt, Rubens, and Anthony van Dyck.”

Giovanni Bellini, Titian (Tiziano Vecellio), Tintoretto (Jacobo Robusti), Paolo Veronese, and Canaletto (Giovanni Antonio Canal) were members of the Venetian school in the 16th century, connecting the paintings that Gabriel restores with the city where he lives—Venice. Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck were Flemish painters, and Rembrandt van Rijn was Dutch. All of these artists are considered “old masters,” or European artists working between the Renaissance and 1800. Their work is famous for its technical mastery, making it a supreme challenge for a forger like Gabriel.

“Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear, oil on canvas, 60 by 49 centimeters, by Vincent van Gogh stood atop a baize-covered pedestal in the center of the Courtauld’s luminous Great Hall, veiled in white cloth and surrounded by a quartet of security guards.”

In this quote, Silva alludes to the real-life collection of the Courtauld Gallery, which includes this painting. Famously, Van Gogh cut off part of his own ear before creating this self-portrait in France in 1889.

“It seemed his client had no interest in hanging the Rothko in the Belgravia mansion.”

Here, Lovegrove talks to Gabriel about one of his clients. Mark Rothko was an American abstract expressionist painter who worked in the mid-20th century. His color field paintings are not representational like those of the old masters.

“Il Pordenone’s towering altarpiece was adhered to a purpose-built wooden armature in the center of the nave.”

This is an allusion to the altarpiece of the Annunciation in the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli. It includes the angel Gabriel, after whom the protagonist of A Death in Cornwall is named. Gabriel the art restorer cleans an artistic depiction of the angel with his name.

“‘It’s only money, Gabriel.’ ‘Says the woman who has an endless supply of it.’”

This is a dialogue between billionaire heiress Anna Rolfe and Gabriel. Anna is a counterexample of The Destructive Influence of Extreme Wealth. Though Anna’s inherited fortune means that she can buy whatever she wants without having to work for it, she dedicates her life to improving the lives of others by making music and restoring stolen paintings to their rightful owners.

“Included were the Pollack and de Kooning that had been on display in Ricard’s gallery, along with works by Gustav Klimt, Mark Rothko, Andre Derain, Georges Braque, Fernand Leger, Wassily Kandinsky, Andy Warhol, Robert Motherwell, and Cy Twombly.”

This is the list of artists whose work Ricard initially offers to trade Anna for the paintings Gabriel forged. They vary in style and nationality—for instance, Klimt was a symbolist from Vienna, Kandinsky was an abstract artist from Russia, and Twombly was an abstract artist from America—but are all from the 20th century. These are all well-respected, and expensive, artists, but Gabriel and his crew are looking for the stolen Picasso surrealist painting.

“It included additional canvases by Pollock and Rothko, yet another De Kooning, a Basquiat, a Bacon, and a Jasper Johns.”

These are other paintings that Ricard offers to trade. They are all contemporary works of art. Jackson Pollack creates drip paintings, Jean-Michel Basquiat is a neo-expressionist, and Jasper Johns is an abstract impressionist.

“This is the business of Switzerland, Allon. We cater to the needs of the global superrich.”

Here, Christoph talks about who the Swiss prioritize. This develops the theme of the destructive influence of extreme wealth—the super-rich are so influential, according to this hyperbolic statement, that an entire country exists to cater to their needs. Their control of culture, through obtaining artwork, is highlighted in A Death in Cornwall.

“Ingrid worked in her bedroom with the door tightly closed and Scandinavian jazz flowing from the speakers of her laptop. Tord Gustavsen, Marcin Wasilewski, Bobo Stenson, the Maciej Obara Quarter—essentially the entire ECM Records catalogue.”

Here, Silva includes allusions to musical artists instead of visual artists. ECM Records is a jazz and classical label. The convention of a hacker listening to music while working dates back to classic works of cyberpunk, such as Synners by Pat Cadigan.

“The art world is a murky swamp. And with a few notable exceptions, dealers are the slimy green scum that floats on the surface.”

Here, Gabriel describes Ricard making a deal to trade the Picasso without permission from its owner, OOC, developing the theme of The Commodification of Art. Art dealers like him are metaphorically described as scum. Silva’s metaphor compares the business of selling art to a swamp; dealers are merely a small part of this industry.

“Fifteen years ago the total amount of wealth in private hands worldwide was about a hundred and twenty-five trillion dollars. It is now four hundred and fifty trillion dollars, approximately ten percent of which is held in offshore financial centers where it is beyond the reach of tax collectors. Which means the money cannot generate tax revenue to provide better schools or housing or health care for ordinary citizens.”

In this quote, Lambert describes how the wealthy use shell companies to avoid paying taxes that would help people who aren’t wealthy. This develops the theme of the destructive influence of extreme wealth.

“In July 1942, one week after the Paris Roundup, Levy entrusted the painting to his lawyer, Hector Favreau, and went into hiding in the south with his wife and daughter. Favreau kept the painting until 1944, when he sold it to Andre Delacroix, a senior official in the collaborationist Vichy regime. The painting remained in the Delacroix family until 2015, when it was put up for sale at the venerable Christie’s auction house in London.”

This is part of the provenance that Charlotte wrote about the surrealist Picasso. It shows one way that the Nazis stole precious works of art, heirlooms, from Jewish people—through unscrupulous lawyers. This develops the theme of the commodification of art. The story of the work—even the story of its theft by a fascist regime—becomes part of its monetary value.

“Other clients of the firm included a well-known Italian automaker, the owner of one of the world’s large hotel chains, an Indian textile tycoon, a Swedish steel baron, a Canadian mining magnate, the leader of a Mexican drug cartel, and, curiously, a descendant of Otto von Bismarck.”

This is a list of some of the people who use the services of the Harris Weber law firm. They are examples of the super-rich from around the world. This quote develops the theme of the destructive influence of extreme wealth. The firm makes no distinction between owners of corporations and leaders of violent cartels. Money equals power, regardless of its origins.

“His office was an architectural showpiece, the realm of an alchemist who magically made money from money.”

Here, Silva describes Bradley’s office using occult imagery. Bradley is one of the richest people in Cornwall, and he married within his class but kept Charlotte—who was lower class—as a mistress. His extravagant possessions suggest that there is something supernatural—or unnatural—about the way he makes money not by working but through financial “alchemy.”

“The Virgin and Child with the infant Saint John?”

This is an allusion to a painting by Florigerio that is part of the Courtauld’s collection in the novel and in real life. It is a work of Italian Renaissance art. Gabriel agrees to clean this painting in exchange for a look at the gallery’s security tapes that show Charlotte meeting with Lucinda. Gabriel’s skill as an art restorer not only makes him money but also allows him access to the secrets he needs to solve his cases.

“He had always prided himself on his mastery of time. It was one of many peculiar skills he had developed as a child, the ability to declare with stopwatch accuracy when a minute or an hour had passed. Now time slipped through his fingers like water, and any effort to measure its progress set his head to throbbing.”

This passage develops the characterization of Gabriel; he has odd skills that come in handy when working as a spy. His perception of time is shaken when he is concussed by Robinson’s men, revealing that he is mortal and flawed, unlike a superhero. Silva uses a simile that compares time and water to describe Gabriel’s changed mental state.

“It was his considered opinion, having resided in the United Kingdom for a number of years, that it was the laughter of two Englishmen of working-class upbringing, perhaps thirty to thirty-five years of age.”

In England, accents are sometimes viewed as a marker of social class. Unless they make an effort to adopt the posh BBC British accent, people’s regional accents are indicators of their socioeconomic status, as well as their family line. This also develops Gabriel’s characterization; he speaks a variety of languages and is sensitive to differences in dialect.

“The truth is, there is no right and wrong any longer. There is only power and money. And more often than not, one begets the other.”

Robinson, the novel’s primary antagonist, speaks these lines in defense of his amoral worldview. The statement describes the destructive influence of extreme wealth. Robinson’s single-minded pursuit of wealth has left him unable to see or care about the moral consequences of his actions.

“There isn’t a bank or investment house in London that isn’t in bed with Harris Weber.”

Silva develops the characterization of Lucinda, another antagonist, in this passage. She jumps on the bandwagon of using shell companies to avoid taxes because it is popular. The idea that everyone is doing it allows her to justify clearly unethical choices, including having Charlotte killed and conspiring to remove Edwards from her position as prime minister. Her career is evidence of The Ubiquity of Political Corruption.

“Hillary Edwards planned to shut down the London Laundromat.”

Edwards loses her position as prime minister because she challenges the ubiquity of political corruption. The conspiracy to oust Edwards from the government is also connected to the destructive influence of extreme wealth. The very wealthy are the ones laundering money through Harris Weber, and they want Edwards out of their way.

“The richest of the rich, the worst of the worst.”

This is a line that Silva repeats multiple times in A Death in Cornwall. It clearly and succinctly lays out the theme of the destructive influence of extreme wealth. When an individual becomes wealthy enough not to need to work, they are isolated from the rest of humanity, and they begin to care only about maintaining their wealth.

“The work in question, Madonna and Child, oil on canvas, by Orazio Gentileschi, arrived at the cottage in the back of a Mercedes transit van.”

Gabriel agrees to clean this piece for Lovegrove in exchange for his help with the case. Gentileschi is a baroque Italian painter heavily inspired by Caravaggio. Sarah gives Gabriel a portion of the money from the sale of this painting, and he buys a cottage in Cornwall with it. Unlike the novel’s super-rich antagonists, Gabriel’s wealth comes directly from his labor.

“The geography of the west Cornish coast was such that twice each afternoon Gabriel walked through a crime scene.”

This is an example of a memento mori, or a reminder of mortality. Common examples of memento mori include cemeteries, hospitals, and pieces of skeletons. Here, Gabriel encounters a crime scene—something that dramatically changed the landscape so that it is reminiscent of death—rather than a place that is traditionally associated with death.