alb3621571

JOHN FREDERICK LEWIS. Arab school

Arab School. Artist: John Frederick Lewis (British, London 1805-1876 Walton-on-Thames). Dimensions: sheet: 11 11/16 x 19 1/8 in. (29.7 x 48.6 cm). Date: 1841-51.
For most of the 1840s, Lewis lived in Egypt, where he famously adopted aspects of a pasha's dress and manner. Among the most accomplished of the Victorian "Orientalists," he is noted for his total mastery of the watercolor medium and his eye for rich detail. In this study for an exhibited work of the same title (Victoria and Albert Museum, London), Lewis captured the sleepy routine of a Cairo schoolroom, centered on a boy reading for a bearded teacher whose attention appears to be elsewhere. The drawing concentrates on the faces and turbans of the seated students and indicates the setting broadly, using the brown paper to suggest unadorned walls and floor and to provide a base for quickly brushed costume elements and the masterfully rendered wood grain of the teacher's desk. In contrast to Lewis's finished watercolors, with their elaborate detailing, this study demonstrates his rapid, informal use of the medium.

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Author:

JOHN FREDERICK LEWIS (1805-1876)

Title:

Arab school

Caption:

Arab School. Artist: John Frederick Lewis (British, London 1805-1876 Walton-on-Thames). Dimensions: sheet: 11 11/16 x 19 1/8 in. (29.7 x 48.6 cm). Date: 1841-51. For most of the 1840s, Lewis lived in Egypt, where he famously adopted aspects of a pasha's dress and manner. Among the most accomplished of the Victorian "Orientalists," he is noted for his total mastery of the watercolor medium and his eye for rich detail. In this study for an exhibited work of the same title (Victoria and Albert Museum, London), Lewis captured the sleepy routine of a Cairo schoolroom, centered on a boy reading for a bearded teacher whose attention appears to be elsewhere. The drawing concentrates on the faces and turbans of the seated students and indicates the setting broadly, using the brown paper to suggest unadorned walls and floor and to provide a base for quickly brushed costume elements and the masterfully rendered wood grain of the teacher's desk. In contrast to Lewis's finished watercolors, with their elaborate detailing, this study demonstrates his rapid, informal use of the medium.

Technique/material:

Watercolor and gouache over black chalk on brownish paper

Museum:

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA

Credit:

Album / Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY

Releases:

? Model Release: No - ? Property Release: No
Rights questions?

Image size:

6401 x 3881 px | 71.1 MB

Print size:

54.2 x 32.9 cm | 21.3 x 12.9 in (300 dpi)

Keywords:

CHALK • DRAWINGS AND PRINTS • DRAWINGS • EUROPE • GOUACHE • JOHN FREDERICK LEWIS • METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK, USA • PAPER • PASTELS • UNITED KINGDOM • WATERCOLOR AND GOUACHE OVER BLACK CHALK ON BROWNISH PAPER • WATERCOLORS