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Peasant seated, reading

Maker

Formerly attributed to
(artist)
1610-1685

Title

Date of Production

1600 - 1699

Medium

graphite, pen and brown ink, brown wash on laid paper, the lower left corner cut

Dimensions

Height: 9.9 cm
Width: 6.9 cm

Accession Number

D.1952.RW.2576

Mode of Acquisition

Robert Clermont Witt, bequest, 1952

Credit

The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)

Copyright

Work in the public domain

Location

Not currently on display

Keywords

Label Text

This study shows a peasant reading clumsily, sitting sideways on his chair. The graphite underdrawing around the legs suggests that the artist had originally planned to show the figure sitting properly on the chair. Peasants reading were a popular motif, as broadsheets (the forerunners of newspapers) had only recently been invented, and artists were curious about how they would adapt to this new medium.

Provenance

acquired from an anonymous source by Colnaghi (London), 17 January 1939; purchased there (in part exchange) by Sir Robert Witt, London (1872-1952), 17 January 1939 (£4); Witt Bequest 1952

Exhibition History

Dutch drawings from the Witt Collection: Part 2: Other than landscape, The Courtauld Gallery, London, 1976-77 (Nov.-Feb.)

Literature

Dutch drawings from the Witt Collection: Part 2: Other than landscape, Courtauld Gallery, London, November 1976 - Febr
cat. no. 40

Inscriptions

Watermark: Watermark: none.

Inscription: Verso: lower left corner, graphite: “1x0”.

Collector's mark: none.

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