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Sketchbook

late 19th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Waterhouse, John William (R.A., R.I.) (artist)
Place of origin
Britain (made)

Sketchbook containing preliminary drawings. 68 pages (others missing) of white wove paper, bound in canvas boards, with a pencil holder.

Object details

Category
Drawings
Object type
Sketchbook
Parts
This object consists of 36 parts.

  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
  • Sketchbook
Materials and techniques
Pencil on wove paper, bound in canvas boards
Pencil
Wove Paper
Binding
Drawing
Brief description
Sketchbook by J. W. Waterhouse containing preliminary drawings for oil paintings including two versions of 'The Lady of Shalott' (1888 and 1894), and 'Ulysses and the Sirens' (1891). Also preliminary drawings for 'Circe offering the Cup to Ulysses' (1891). 68 pages (others missing) of white wove paper, bound in canvas boards, with a pencil holder.
Physical description
Sketchbook containing preliminary drawings. 68 pages (others missing) of white wove paper, bound in canvas boards, with a pencil holder.
Dimensions
  • Size of volume length: 155mm (closed) (Note: Measured in Book Conservation measuring box)
  • Size of volume width: 240mm (closed) (Note: Measured in Book Conservation measuring box)
  • Thickness: 16mm (closed)
Open dimensions are approximately: Depth: 410 x Width: 155 x Height: 185 - landscape format
Credit line
Given by Mr John Physick, great-nephew of the artist
Object history
The drawings contained in this sketchbook are preliminary drawings for oil paintings exhibited at the Royal Academy, including two versions of ‘The Lady of Shalott’ (1888 and 1894), and ‘Ulysses and the Sirens’ (1891). There are also studies for ‘Circe offering the Cup to Ulysses’ (1891), exhibited at the New Gallery, London and other compositions.

The ‘Lady of Shalott’, of 1888, is in the Tate Gallery, London, and is a portrait of the artist’s sister Mary (Physick); that exhibited in 1894 is in the Leeds Art Gallery, and ‘Ulysses and the Sirens’ is in the National Gallery, Melbourne. Other sketches for ‘Ulysses and the Sirens’ are in a sketchbook in the Department of Prints and Drawings, E.1-1949.
Subjects depicted
Cup
Sirens
Ulysses
Circe
Literary reference'The Lady of Shallott'
Bibliographic reference
Prettejohn, Elizabeth, J. W. Waterhouse: the modern Pre-Raphaelite, Groninger Museum, Groningen and Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2008 p.222-225, ill. p.228
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
E.1110-1963

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Record createdJune 2, 2008
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O155150/sketchbook-waterhouse-john-william/
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