A Group of Five Donkeys, Three Standing, Two Lying
Medium
Soft-ground etching and aquatint
Dimensions
Plate: 7 13/16 x 10 7/8 in. (19.8 x 27.7 cm) Sheet: 18 1/2 x 12 3/8 in. (47 x 31.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1933
Accession Number
33.7(9)
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late 18th century, British artists Thomas Rowlandson and Sawrey Gilpin collaborated on this delightful print of five donkeys at rest. Rowlandson, celebrated for his witty caricatures and scenes of everyday life, partnered with Gilpin, a specialist in animal subjects, create an image that observation with gentle humor. Dated 1783–87, the work reflects the era’s growing fascination with natural history and rural subjects in British art. The medium of soft-ground etching combined with aquatint was ideally suited to the theme. Soft-ground etching captures the loose, sketch-like quality of ...
About the Artist
Thomas Rowlandson|Sawrey Gilpin · 1756–1827
Thomas Rowlandson (1757–1827) was an English artist and caricaturist whose satirical watercolors and prints captured the social life of Georgian Britain with unparalleled wit and technical mastery. Alongside James Gillray, he is recognized as one of the greatest British graphic artists, and his distinctive flowing line and keen observations have made his work integral to understanding late 18th an...