Girl Spearing Dolphin
c. 1900
Medium
charcoal and chalk on green wove paper
Dimensions
sheet: 43.97 × 30.48 cm (17 5/16 × 12 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Corcoran Collection (Gift of the American Academy of Arts and Letters)
Accession Number
2015.19.850
Art Historical Context
Elihu Vedder's *Girl Spearing Dolphin*c. 1900) captures a dynamic, mythical scene in charcoal and chalk on green wove paper, measuring 17 5/16 × 12 inches. This intimate drawing depicts a young woman in poised action, spear poised toward a dolphin, evoking ancient legends of sea nymphs and aquatic adventures. Vedder, an American artist who spent much of his career in Italy, drew inspiration from Renaissance masters and classical mythology, infusing his works with a dreamlike symbolism that bridged 19th-century Romanticism emerging modernism. The choice of green wove paper is striking, providi...
About the Artist
Elihu Vedder · 1836–1923
Elihu Vedder was born on February 26, 1836, in New York City to Dr. Elihu Vedder Sr., a dentist, and his cousin Elizabeth Vedder. As a young boy, his family relocated to Cuba for his father's ventures, an experience that sparked his artistic aspirations amid the Caribbean landscapes. He later divided his time between a boarding school and his maternal grandfather Alexander Vedder's home in Schenec...