Description
In this Siege of Gibraltar study, John Singleton Copley contrasts an upward-reaching figure with a prone body extending across the lower sheet. Another body is more faintly indicated at the left, allowing different stages of attention to remain visible on the same sheet. A grid crosses the paper, connecting these separate bodily arrangements to the construction of the larger battle scene.
Made in 1785–86 with black and red chalk on blue paper, the drawing gives its figures definition through different kinds of emphasis. Copley uses the sheet to explore a part of the history painting at close range, leaving the working character of the marks visible. Its appeal lies in that concentrated scale. A large event is approached through a small grouping, allowing the viewer to see how the force of a composition can depend on the exact relationship between a few people.
Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the John Singleton Copley collection.
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