Study of Figure for "In the Mountains"
Medium
figures
Classification
figures
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Mrs. Walter Shirlaw
Accession Number
1912-16-35
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Walter Shirlaw's *Study of Figure for " the Mountains"* (1875–80) offers a glimpse into the preparatory process of this Scottish-born American artist, who bridged European training with the emerging vibrancy of late 19th-century American. Active during a time when illustrators like Shirlaw were transitioning from magazine work to fine art, this figure study likely served as a foundational sketch for his larger composition *In the Mountains*, capturing the human form with attentive detail amid the Romantic allure of natural landscapes. As a preparatory drawing classified under "figures," the w...