Study for the head of Morgan le Fay
Drawing
ca.1862
ca.1862
| Artist/Maker |
This remarkably sensitive drawing by Frederick Sandys is a preparatory study for 'Morgan-le-Fay', an oil painting of 1862-3 now in Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. A similar drawing in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, titled ‘Study of a Young Mulatto Girl, full face’, references a now-outdated term referring to a person of mixed black and white descent. The model in both drawings is thought to be Fanny Eaton (1835-1924), a young model of Jamaican and white British heritage known for her Afro-textured black hair, to which Sandys was particularly drawn. Eaton also sat for Rossetti, Millais, Albert Moore and Simeon Solomon.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Study for the head of Morgan le Fay (popular title) |
| Materials and techniques | Pencil drawing on paper with touches of red chalk |
| Brief description | Study for the head of Morgan le Fay, Frederick Sandys (1829-1904), c.1862; chalk drawing on toned paper, signed with monogram AFS. |
| Physical description | Head and shoulders portrait of a woman with Afro-textured black hair, body and head turned to the viewer's right, the face tilted slightly up and to the viewer's left |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Historical context | In her catalogue raisonné of Frederick Sandys (1999), Betty Elzea identifies the sitter in this drawing as Fanny Eaton (1835-1924), a young Black model of Jamaican and white British heritage, known for her Afro-textured black hair, to which Sandys was particularly drawn, who also sat for Rossetti, Millais, Albert Moore and Simeon Solomon. She appears in a related head study in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, titled 'Study of the head of a young mulatto woman, full face' (Accession no. 6362). |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | This remarkably sensitive drawing by Frederick Sandys is a preparatory study for 'Morgan-le-Fay', an oil painting of 1862-3 now in Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. A similar drawing in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, titled ‘Study of a Young Mulatto Girl, full face’, references a now-outdated term referring to a person of mixed black and white descent. The model in both drawings is thought to be Fanny Eaton (1835-1924), a young model of Jamaican and white British heritage known for her Afro-textured black hair, to which Sandys was particularly drawn. Eaton also sat for Rossetti, Millais, Albert Moore and Simeon Solomon. |
| Bibliographic references |
|
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.4141-1909 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | June 30, 2009 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest
