Is this a scientific painting, a religious painting, or both?

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]What could possibly be happening at the center of this painting that has all of these people so interested? What has grabbed the attention of this young man and this young woman and these children?

[00:00:11]All of whom appear to be laser focused on something unfolding at the center of this device. A scientific demonstration, of course. And he's right. But is that what this painting is actually about?

[00:00:24]Well, not quite. Because while there is no doubt that this is a painting that depicts a scientific subject matter and these people are proxies of experiencing an experiment, there is a deeper argument to be made about what Wright is actually trying to show us. And it doesn't reveal itself through any of the details that we can see. Instead, this painting central argument is made by the details that have been excluded from the artwork. And to properly decode its message, we need to understand what isn't there or what has been replaced.

[00:00:55]But first, we need to clearly define what it is that we're looking at. Stay with me. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 individuals surrounding a beautifully designed brass instrument called an aurory. A mechanical model of the solar system that predicts the relative positions of planets and moons. And we can just make out a shape that looks like Saturn or this one that is presumably the Earth and the Moon. And over here, Jupiter.

[00:01:21]Oh, what about the sun? The center of the solar system. And here it's the first thing that's notably been replaced and hidden away. The light of a lantern has been swapped in its place. And though we can't physically see it, here we are given the painting's most important motif, if you know how to spot it. Because by lighting this scene with that single source, Joseph Wright of Derby turns a moment of scientific wonder into a scene of deep religious consequence. This aurory is a standin for the universe. And while the creator of the universe, God is not present, this philosopher is. His red robe, his long hair, his full frontal exposure.

[00:02:00]And in this context, he is a priest, his assistant, a scribe, his teachings, a sermon, this aurory, the altar, and these people, the faithful. and right doesn't make an argument that science has replaced religion but instead makes a case that science is becoming religious a practice that is taking its forms its hush its devotional postures and in this moment we witness faith of a different type a conversion towards new ideas the recording of a new gospel and if that isn't impressive enough for you consider this one final idea this light is artificial flame on a wick and requires someone to tend And while real and beautiful, it is also fragile and finite. It is not the eternal light of God, but something else entirely and something that has to be kept lit. an argument for the nature of faith.