Head of a Screaming Man (recto) Woman and Man Playing Cards (verso)
Medium
black crayon
Dimensions
{"sheet":{"height":0.323,"width":0.407}}
Classification
Drawing
Department
Drawings
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Dudley P. Allen Fund
Accession Number
1967.130
Tags
male
About this artwork
Born in rural Pennsylvania, trained in Italy, and based in London for the entirety of his career, Benjamin West exemplifies the transatlantic character of colonial-era American art. In England, his success as a history painter propelled him to the position of court painter by 1772. West’s study of the head of a screaming man, believed to be done in preparation for a now-lost painting commissioned by King George III (1738–1820), was likely not drawn from life. It was modeled on the ideas of Frenc...