Study of a Girl in a Dress with Puffed Sleeves
Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones (Birmingham 1833 - London 1898)
Category
Art / Drawings and watercolours
Date
1866 (initialed and dated)
Materials
Red, black and white chalk drawing on paper
Measurements
480 x 340 mm
Order this imageCollection
Wightwick Manor, West Midlands
NT 1287917
Summary
Red, black and white chalk drawing on paper, Study of a Girl in a Dress with Puffed Sleeves by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones (Birmingham 1833 - London 1898), signed with initials and dated, lower right: EB.J/ 1866. A half-length portrait of a girl in profile, looking over right shoulder, with short curly hair, wearing white puff sleeved dress and holding a willow branch. Th is draing shows the obviousl debt of the artist to the Renaissance, for example Palma Vecchio's Portrait of a Poet, circa 1516, now in the National Gallery, London. Both use the symbol of the bay leaf, probably used here, as an evergreen, as a symbol of virtue.
Full description
Drawing was both a great pleasure and an essential discipline for Burne-Jones throughout his career. This is one of five fine drawings (all from Miss Crawshay's collection) in the chalk technique characteristic of Burne-Jones's work of the mid-1860s. He used it both for figure studies for paintings such as those for Green Summer of c.1864 (Birmingham Art Gallery) and in signed finished presentation drawings such as this, in what Stephen Wildman describes as "this style of soft chalk on fairly heavy paper, which gives a rich grainy texture to shadows and background." The drawing also reflects Burne-Jones' growing interest in Italian Renaissance and classical art, especially after his second visit to Italy in 1862. The dress resembles the costume seen in some Renaissance pictures, and reflects the interest in decoratively-patterned folds of drapery characteristic of his later work. See also Head of a young woman [WIG/ D/ 62, Dining Room], Study of a young woman [WIG/ D/ 98, Honeysuckle Room], Study of Maria Zambaco [WIG/ D/ 49] and Head of Augusta Jones [WIG/ D/ 51, both Indian Bird Room].
Provenance
Thomas Ayres; his posthumouis sale, Christie's, 23rd April 1906 (9), bought in; Miss Sylvia Crawshay; by whom given to Wightwick Manor in 1975 Mrs Sylvia Crawshay; by whom given to Wightwick Manor in 1975
Marks and inscriptions
Portrait of Lady in Puff Sleeves and Gown(?)36/Valued at £25. (label)
Makers and roles
Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones (Birmingham 1833 - London 1898) , artist
References
Wildman 1995 Stephen Wildman, Visions of Life and Love, Virginia 1995, No. 79 Spencer-Longhurst 2011 Paul Spencer-Longhurst, 'Works on paper by Rossetti, Burne-Jones and their contemporaries recently donated to Wightwick Manor', The Burlington Magazine, Vol CLII, no. 1297, April 2011, pp. 232-240, 8. fig. 30