(From Sketchbook)

Art Historical Context

This delicate ink and wash drawing on paper, hailing from Thomas Sully's sketch (ca. 1810–20), offers a glimpse into the preparatory world of one of America's foremost portrait painters. Sully, a British-born artist who settled in Philadelphia, was a master of the Romantic style, blending the elegant brushwork of Sir Joshua Reynolds with a distinctly American vitality. Active during the early 19th century, captured the likenesses of presidents, celebrities, and everyday figures, amassing over 2,600 works. This modest sheet (9 x 11½ in.), now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's American Wing, likely served as quick studies of men and women—essential practice for his grand oil portraits. The medium of ink and wash exemplifies the fluidity of sketchbook work: bold, expressive lines define forms, while subtle gray washes add depth and shadow, mimicking the tonal modeling Sully perfected in finished paintings. Such sketches were intimate tools for artists of the era, allowing rapid exploration of poses, drapery, and anatomy amid the bustling ateliers of Federal America. As a cultural artifact acquired via the Rogers Fund in 1953, it underscores Sully's role in shaping a national identity through portraiture, bridging European traditions with New World optimism. Visitors will appreciate its raw energy, revealing the artist's hand at play before the glamour of his celebrated canvases.

About the Artist

Thomas Sully · 1783–1872

Thomas Sully, born on June 19, 1783, in Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England, to actor parents Matthew Sully and Sarah Chester, emigrated with his family to Charleston, South Carolina, in 1792. Raised in a theatrical environment, young Thomas debuted as a tumbler at age 11 before discovering his artistic talent. He studied miniature painting with his brother Lawrence Sully, brother-in-law Jean Belzon...