Letter with Sketch of Artist Painting Stage Scenery
Medium
Pen and black ink over graphite
Dimensions
sheet: 7 7/8 x 7 1/8 in. (20 x 18.1 cm)
Classification
Drawings|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of the Estate of Randolph Gunter, 1962
Accession Number
62.676.8
Tags
Art Historical Context
This charming 1831 drawing captures a moment of artistic exchange in early Victorian Britain. Created in pen and black ink over graphite, the sheet functions as both a personal letter and a lively sketch showing an artist at work painting stage scenery. The collaborative nature of the piece—attributed to scene painters Thomas and William Grieve alongside the young architect Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin—reflects the close professional circles that linked theater design and architectural ornament during this period. The Grieve family were celebrated for their innovative theatrical backdrops a...
About the Artist
Thomas Grieve|William Grieve|Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin (British|British|British) · 1799 |1800 |1812 –1882 |1844 |1852
British, 1799–1882|British, 1800–1844|British, London 1812–1852 Ramsgate