Sketch for "Christmas on the River"

William Leroy Jacobs (1907-1994) was an American watercolorist known for his atmospheric landscapes and marine subjects. Sketch for 'Christmas on the River' is a watercolor preparatory study for a larger composition, depicting a Christmas scene on a river with the atmospheric handling and tonal subtlety that distinguish Jacobs's best work. The watercolor medium allows the spontaneity and atmospheric effects that would be developed in the finished painting, and the Christmas subject allows Jacobs to exercise his talent for capturing the specific atmospheric effects of winter on the water.

Jacobs's preparatory watercolors are important in understanding his working method because they show the compositional and atmospheric decisions that underlie his finished work. Sketch for 'Christmas on the River' demonstrates that Jacobs's atmospheric effects were established in the watercolor sketch before being developed in the finished painting, revealing the spontaneity and direct observation that distinguish his preparatory work from the more deliberate handling of the finished compositions.

Sketch for 'Christmas on the River' is Jacobs's preparatory method in action: a watercolor study for a Christmas scene on a river with the atmospheric spontaneity that distinguishes his working process. The watercolor reveals the compositional and atmospheric decisions that would be developed in the finished painting.