Study for a plate from The Task
c. 1800
Medium
Ink wash on paper
Dimensions
2.7 × 6 cm (1 1/8 × 2 3/8 in.)
Classification
ink or chalk wash
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
131567
Art Historical Context
Thomas Stothard (1755–1834), a prolific British artist celebrated for his delicate book illustrations and history paintings, created this *Study for a plate from Task* around 1800. It served as a preparatory drawing for an engraving in an illustrated edition of William Cowper's popular 1785 poem *The Task*, which explored everyday life, nature, and introspection during the Romantic era's shift toward emotional depth and the ordinary sublime. Stothard's neoclassical style, blending graceful figures with poetic narrative, made him a favorite for literary projects, capturing vignettes from Cowper...
About the Artist
Thomas Stothard · 1755–1834
Thomas Stothard RA (1755–1834) was born on 17 August 1755 at the Black Horse Inn in London's Long Acre, the son of a prosperous publican originally from Stutton near Tadcaster. A delicate child, he was sent at age five to relatives in Yorkshire, attending schools in Acomb, Tadcaster, and later Ilford, Essex, where he honed his drawing skills by copying prints. Following his father's death in 1770,...