A Woodland Study

1851·Brush and black and brown washes, with white gouache and scraping, ruled in graphite, on ivory paperboard·22.5 × 17.2 cm (8 7/8 × 6 13/16 in.)

<p>An English Romantic painter who was best known for his visionary landscapes, Palmer may have created this monochromatic watercolor as a preparatory study for a print. It can be related to 13 delicate etchings made by the artist in the early 1850s. The watercolor was created with graphite underdrawing, over which several brown and black washes were laid down and then heightened by opaque white paint. To emphasize the contrast between light and dark, Palmer scraped pigment off the drawing as the final phase in this considered and complex artistic process.</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1851
Medium: Brush and black and brown washes, with white gouache and scraping, ruled in graphite, on ivory paperboard
Dimensions: 22.5 × 17.2 cm (8 7/8 × 6 13/16 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Samuel Palmer

Artist

Samuel Palmer

Printmaking

Samuel Palmer was a British painter and etcher of the early nineteenth century known for visionary landscapes that merged romantic naturalism with spiritual intensity. Working primarily in watercolor and oil, Palmer developed a distinctive approach to pastoral and mountainous subjects, often depicting rural scenes suffused with golden light and a sense of pastoral transcendence. His work bridged the Romantic movement and early landscape modernism, influencing subsequent generations of British artists. Palmer exhibited regularly during his lifetime and maintained a sustained practice in printmaking alongside his paintings.

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