Face of Man (from Sketchbook)
Medium
Graphite, pen, ink, and watercolor on paper
Dimensions
Dimensions unavailable
Classification
Drawing
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Gift of William Gedney Bunce, by exchange, 1979
Accession Number
1979.581.90 verso
Tags
Art Historical Context
John William Casilear, 19th-century American artist best known for his luminous Hudson River School landscapes, reveals a more intimate side in *Face of Man (frombook)*. This delicate study, housed in The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Wing, captures the thoughtful gaze of an unidentified man, showcasing Casilear's skill in portraiture amid his primary focus on nature. Likely created during his travels or daily observations, the undated drawing exemplifies the sketchbooks artists carried to hone their craft and record fleeting moments. Crafted with graphite for subtle shading, pen and ink for p...
About the Artist
John William Casilear · 1811–1893
John William Casilear, born on June 25, 1811, in New York City, began his artistic career as an engraver, apprenticed under the prominent Peter Maverick in 1826. He later studied painting under Asher B. Durand in 1831, forming a close friendship that profoundly shaped his path. Durand, influenced by Thomas Cole, introduced Casilear to landscape painting by the mid-1830s, transitioning him from ban...