Artwork
Group of drawings
Group of drawings is a drawing by David Bomberg. It dates from 1950 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
Around 1950 David Bomberg produced a series of charcoal drawings that are now part of the Victoria and Albert Museum’s collection. The works belong to the later phase of his career, following his return to Britain after a teaching stint in Canada. They exemplify his continued interest in rapid, gestural observation of everyday objects.
Subject & Meaning
One drawing in the series depicts a piece of fabric folded into irregular, angular pleats, with a shadowed mass beneath that suggests a bowl or a crumpled napkin. The composition focuses on the interplay of light and shadow, inviting viewers to consider the transient qualities of ordinary material.
Technique & Style
Bomberg employed a loose, scratch‑like application of charcoal, producing uneven, hurried strokes that convey immediacy. Cross‑hatching builds the darker areas, while the illuminated edge of the cloth is rendered with lighter, more open marks. The overall effect is a study in shape and volume achieved through rapid line work rather than refined modeling.
History & Provenance
Bomberg entered the Slade School of Art under Henry Tonks but was expelled in 1913 for rejecting academic conventions. After decades of teaching, including a period in Canada during the 1940s, he resumed his own practice, culminating in the 1950 drawings. The Victoria and Albert Museum acquired the group, preserving this late period of his output.
Context
As a member of the Whitechapel Boys, Bomberg was part of a circle of early‑20th‑century Jewish artists in London who sought new visual languages. The 1950 drawings reflect his ongoing departure from traditional representation, aligning with his earlier avant‑garde experiments while also responding to post‑war artistic concerns about materiality and perception.
Artist & collection
Artist
David Garshen Bomberg (5 December 1890 – 19 August 1957) was a British painter, and one of the Whitechapel Boys.
