Commanders Engaged at Sea
[1785], reissued July 1, 1802
Medium
Hand-colored etching
Dimensions
Sheet: 9 5/8 × 13 9/16 in. (24.5 × 34.4 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1959
Accession Number
59.533.126
Tags
Art Historical Context
Thomas Rowlandson’s “Commanders Engaged at Sea,” a hand-colored etching published by S. W. Fores in 1785 and reissued in 1802, offers a witty glimpse into late Georgian satire. Rowlandson, celebrated for his lively caricatures of British society, uses the print medium’s accessibility to lampoon naval officers. Instead of heroic battle scenes, the work depicts commanders absorbed in a game of chance, turning the expected drama of maritime command into a humorous commentary on gambling and idleness. The hand-colored etching technique allowed Rowlandson’s sharp lines and exaggerated figures to r...
About the Artist
Thomas Rowlandson|S. W. Fores · 1756–1827
Thomas Rowlandson (1757–1827) was an English artist and caricaturist whose satirical watercolors and prints captured the social life of Georgian Britain with unparalleled wit and technical mastery. Alongside James Gillray, he is recognized as one of the greatest British graphic artists, and his distinctive flowing line and keen observations have made his work integral to understanding late 18th an...