Description
Closely associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, Frederick Sandys was a friend of Dante Gabriel Rossetti and played an active role in the bohemian artistic, literary, and theatrical circles of the day in London. This is a portrait of Mary Emma Jones, the artist’s favorite model, mistress, and mother of his nine children. An extraordinarily skilled draftsman, here he worked in tone rather than line, delicately drawing in chalk on a rough textured sheet and leaving the low points of the paper untouched to produce a stippled, hazy effect.
Provenance
J. Beecroft, Esq., Bradford, England (?-1927); (his sale, Christie's, London, February 21, 1927, no. 68) (1927); Dr. J. N. Nicoll (after 1927-1964); (his sale, Sotheby's, London, October 29, 1964, no. 225) (1964); C. Powney, Esq. (after 1964-before 1966); (Sotheby's, London, December 21, 1966, no. 305) (1966); Anthony C. W. Crane (after 1966-before 1992); (his sale, Sotheby's, London, November 12, 1992, no. 157) (1992); Hartnoll (after 1992-before 1997); (Kate Ganz Ltd., New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH) (after 1992-1997); Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1997-)
Accession Number
1997.7
Medium
black, brown, and red chalk
Dimensions
Sheet: 55.9 x 39.2 cm (22 x 15 7/16 in.); Secondary Support: 57.1 x 40 cm (22 1/2 x 15 3/4 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Credit Line
Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund
Tags
Drawing Impressionist & Modern (1851–1900) British
Background & Context
Background Story
Frederick Sandys (1829-1898) was a British painter known for the precisely observed, richly colored portraits and figure paintings that make him one of the most accomplished painters of the Pre-Raphaelite tradition. The Coral Necklace from 1871 depicts a woman wearing a coral necklace in the precisely observed, richly colored manner that distinguishes Sandys' best work from the more general portrait painting of his contemporaries. Sandys was a close associate of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, and his precisely observed, richly colored portraits represent one of the most accomplished traditions in Victorian painting.
Cultural Impact
The Coral Necklace is important in the history of Victorian painting because it demonstrates the precisely observed, richly colored manner that Sandys brought to portraiture as one of the most accomplished painters of the Pre-Raphaelite tradition. Sandys' precisely observed, richly colored portraits—combining the precise observation of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood with the rich color of the Victorian tradition—represent one of the most accomplished traditions in Victorian painting, and the 1871 portrait shows this tradition at its most precisely observed.
Why It Matters
The Coral Necklace is Sandys' precisely observed Pre-Raphaelite portrait: a woman wearing a coral necklace rendered in the richly colored manner of one of the most accomplished painters of the Victorian Pre-Raphaelite tradition. The 1871 portrait shows the precise observation and rich color that make Sandys one of the most accomplished Pre-Raphaelite painters.
