'Blot' drawing
Drawing
ca.1750-86 (drawn)
ca.1750-86 (drawn)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The artist and drawing-master Alexander Cozens regarded drawing as a means of tapping the imagination. He devised a method of drawing a ‘blot’ with ink and a broad brush. This had to be done rapidly and without too much conscious thought. The ‘blot’ would then be used as the basis for an invented landscape: any contours suggestive of trees, hills and mountains would be traced and used to create a new composition.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Titles |
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| Materials and techniques | Brush and black ink |
| Brief description | 'Blot' drawing by Alexander Cozens (1717-1786), idea for a landscape in brush and black ink. Great Britain, ca.1750-86. |
| Physical description | Landscape study in brush and black ink. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | Purchased from the Walker Galleries, London, in 1920 |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | The artist and drawing-master Alexander Cozens regarded drawing as a means of tapping the imagination. He devised a method of drawing a ‘blot’ with ink and a broad brush. This had to be done rapidly and without too much conscious thought. The ‘blot’ would then be used as the basis for an invented landscape: any contours suggestive of trees, hills and mountains would be traced and used to create a new composition. |
| Bibliographic reference | Coombs, Katherine British watercolours : 1750-1950 . London: V&A Publications, 2012
p.69, pl.57 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.4276-1920 |
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| Record created | June 30, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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