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Drawing of a plaster cast featuring three ivy leaves

Watercolour
ca. 1879 (made)
Artist/Maker

Essentially self-taught, the young Beatrix Potter copied from nature or from books and drawing manuals, and studied the works of Constable, Gainsborough and Turner in the Royal Academy exhibitions. She was grateful that her education was largely neglected, ‘it would have rubbed off some of the originality.’ However, it was customary for girls of Beatrix’s social class to be proficient at the genteel arts, including painting and drawing, so from November 1878 to May 1883 the Potters arranged drawing lessons for Beatrix and enrolled her at the new National Art Training School in South Kensington to sit her Second Grade Art Student Certificate.

This generic student piece, probably an exercise in design for the Art Student's Certificate, is competent enough. Beatrix was even awarded an ‘Excellent’ in her examinations at the National Art Training School. However, her drawings from this period convey a dark and listless formality that seems in retrospect to be at odds with the light humour and exuberance of her imaginative book illustrations. Beatrix remained sceptical of the value of formal art training: ‘Painting is an awkward thing to teach except the details of the medium. If you and your master are determined to look at nature and art in two different directions you are sure to stick.’


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleDrawing of a plaster cast featuring three ivy leaves (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Sepia watercolour over pencil on paper
Physical description
Sepia watercolour drawing on paper of a plaster plaque or cast featuring three ivy leaves on a stem pointing upwards. The entire image is shaded and incorporates a rectangular frame.
Dimensions
  • Size of paper height: 383mm
  • Size of paper width: 279mm
Production typeUnique
Marks and inscriptions
Pinholes in the corners and middle of edges
Credit line
Given by the Linder Collection
Object history
Given by Leslie Linder (1904-1973) to the National Book League (now the Book Trust) in 1970 as part of a representative selection of Beatrix Potter's work. This selection, comprising 279 drawings and 38 early editions and now known as the Linder Collection, was formerly on long-term loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum between 1989 and 2019 form the charitable trust, The Linder Trust.
Subjects depicted
Summary
Essentially self-taught, the young Beatrix Potter copied from nature or from books and drawing manuals, and studied the works of Constable, Gainsborough and Turner in the Royal Academy exhibitions. She was grateful that her education was largely neglected, ‘it would have rubbed off some of the originality.’ However, it was customary for girls of Beatrix’s social class to be proficient at the genteel arts, including painting and drawing, so from November 1878 to May 1883 the Potters arranged drawing lessons for Beatrix and enrolled her at the new National Art Training School in South Kensington to sit her Second Grade Art Student Certificate.

This generic student piece, probably an exercise in design for the Art Student's Certificate, is competent enough. Beatrix was even awarded an ‘Excellent’ in her examinations at the National Art Training School. However, her drawings from this period convey a dark and listless formality that seems in retrospect to be at odds with the light humour and exuberance of her imaginative book illustrations. Beatrix remained sceptical of the value of formal art training: ‘Painting is an awkward thing to teach except the details of the medium. If you and your master are determined to look at nature and art in two different directions you are sure to stick.’
Bibliographic reference
'Anne Stevenson Hobbs (compiler), The Linder Collection of the works and drawings of Beatrix Potter : catalogue of works on paper, London, 1999' Brief catalogue entry, no. 1.7
Other numbers
  • LOAN:LINDER TRUST.7-1994 - Previous Loan Number
  • 1.7 - Linder Collection catalogue no.
Collection
Library number
LC 1/B/3

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Record createdSeptember 16, 2010
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