The Sailor's Progress
published 1819
Medium
Hand-colored etching on paper
Dimensions
Image: 26.5 × 39.5 cm (10 7/16 × 15 9/16 in.); Plate: 27.2 × 40.1 cm (10 3/4 × 15 13/16 in.); Sheet: 27.6 × 40.7 cm (10 7/8 × 16 1/16 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
90055
Art Historical Context
George Cruikshank's *The Sailor's Progress*, in 1819, is a vibrant hand-colored etching that captures the artist's mastery of satirical printmaking. Measuring about 26.5 × 39.5 cm, this work from the Art Institute of Chicago's Prints and Drawings exemplifies Cruikshank's early career as a leading British caricaturist. Known for his sharp social commentary, Cruiksh drew inspiration from William Hogarth's moralisticprogress" series, using humor and exaggeration to depict human folly. Created in the Regency era, shortly after the Napoleonic Wars, the print likely reflects the struggles of sailor...
About the Artist
George Cruikshank · 1792–1878
George Cruikshank (1792–1878) was born in London on 27 September 1792, the son of Scottish caricaturist Isaac Cruikshank and Mary MacNaughton. His older brother, Isaac Robert Cruikshank, was also a caricaturist and illustrator, while his sister Eliza worked as a designer. From a young age, Cruikshank assisted his father in the studio, contributing titles, backgrounds, and lettering to cartoons by ...