Artwork
Drawing of a dancing girl: study for 'The Borgia Family', a watercolour at Tullie House Museum, Carlisle
Drawing of a dancing girl: study for 'The Borgia Family', a watercolour at Tullie House Museum, Carlisle is a drawing by the Impressionist artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti. It dates from 1850 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This drawing depicts a young girl in motion, dancing.
About this work
Overview
This drawing depicts a young girl in motion, dancing. Created by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, it is an early work in his oeuvre, dating to around two years after the establishment of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood in 1848.
Subject & Meaning
Originally conceived to illustrate a quote from Shakespeare's Richard III, the drawing's subject was later adapted for use in Rossetti's watercolour, The Borgia Family. The girl's pose captures a moment of lively movement.
Technique & Style
The drawing showcases Rossetti's emphasis on crisp, incisive lines during this period, a technique he admired in artists like Albrecht Dürer. This line work was a hallmark of his early style.
History & Provenance
This piece is a preparatory study for a figure in The Borgia Family, a watercolour now housed at Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery in Carlisle. A later version of the watercolour is held by the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Artist & collection
Artist
Gabriel Charles Dante Rossetti (12 May 1828 – 9 April 1882), generally known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti ( rə-ZET-ee; Italian: ), was an English poet, illustrator, painter and translator.
