American Figure Drawings: The Paul Magriel Collection - February 8 to March 10, 1980

Oct 13, 2026

An exhibition at the Mead Art Museum, Amherst College, presenting American figure drawings from the Paul Magriel collection and a supporting selection from the college’s holdings. The foreword frames drawing as a direct expression of an artist’s mind and discusses the fragility of artworks on paper and the care required for preservation. The introduction traces American figure drawing’s development from early neoclassical influences to mid-century landscape and genre work, highlighting key artists and their distinctive line, technique, and artistic intentions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages32

Reading Time49 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Digitized by the Internet Archivein 2021 with funding fromKahle/Austin Foundation https://archive.org/details/americanfiguredr0000unse 0CT121987 EX LIBRISCHARLES SAWYER AMERICAN FIGURE DRAWINGS:THE PAUL MAGRIEL COLLECTION FEBRUARY8 TO MARCH 10,1980 The Mead Art MuseumAmherst College Foreword From ancient times into our own era,drawinghas been a fundamental form of expression.Indrawing,the artist forms his ideas and observa-tions about the world around him.The viewer isgiven insight into the way the artist thinks,prepares and changes his ideas.Fine draughtsman-ship is forthright,lacking the supportive benefit ofcovering color or brushstroke;it must stand on itsown—a direct translation from the artist's mind topurity of form. Just such masterful drawings are those col-lected by Paul Magriel.Mr.Magriel's name issynonomous with connoisseurship to students ofAmerican drawing.His enthusiasm has con-tributed greatly to the rebirth of interest inAmerican drawings in the last decade.His collec-tion is large,varied and exciting,and while onlyfifty figure studies are presented here,the impor-tance and quality of the collection is evident.Theyform a sample which reflects Paul Magriel's senseof exploration,adventure and appreciation of finedraughtsmanship. In conjunction with and as a complement to Mr.Magriel's collection,Amherst College also haspresented a selection from its collection ofAmerican figure drawings.The timing of showingboth collections together is particularly apt,forthe Mead Art Museum has just received a grantfor the restoration of American drawings from thegenerous offices of The Commonwealth of Massa-chusetts Council on the Arts and Humanities.Works of art on paper are extremely fragile anddifficult to preserve.The acidic content of paper,the unstable nature of the materials used,and thesensitivity of both medium and support to lightcombine to require great and sometimes expensivecare for these objects.But just as they require care,they also demand and deserve our respect. We wish to thank Paul Magriel for sharing thesetreasures with us.Thanks are also due to SusanBlack who designed the catalogue,Irene Farrickfor her patient typing and editing of themanuscript,and to Al Szarkowski,Rita Rule andSean Tarpey for their helping in hanging the ex-hibition. —Judith A.BarterCurator of Collections # Introduction Judith A.Barter America before the Revolution was artistical-ly an arid climate.Frugality and simplicity did notlend themselves to appreciation of the fine arts,nor was training for the artistically inclinedavailable.Nonetheless artists were produced here,although to gain significance they eventually hadto study abroad.They also came to learn that finedraughtsmanship was a prerequisite to the profes-sion of painting.From these beginnings then,theearliest American artists went abroad,usually tothe mother country,England.John SingletonCopley(1738-1815)was one of the first and mostimportant Americans to do so. Copley's drawing for The Battle of thePyrenees(the painting is in the Boston Museum ofFine Arts)is a very late work,done a few yearsbefore his death in 1815.While it is a study of theDuke of Wellington and his attendant,it is thehorse which gives the drawing its dramatic im-pact.Copley's style,while attempting to emulateFrench and British history painting,is American infeeling for it is linear and energetic.Copley oftenused pencil or chalk on gray-blue paper and work-ed in a quick manner,using bold hatching forshadow effects. Compared to Copley's active style and sub-ject matter,Thomas Sully's(1783-1872)drawingof Two Seated Gentlemen with a Boy,probablydone around the same period,is static.LikeCopley,Sully studied in England with BenjaminWest(1738-1820)and his style reflects neoclassicaltraining.The Greek klismos chair at left is aneoclassical reference and his drawing style is thatof the quiet,flowing pen and ink technique usedby Fuseli,West and Flaxman. Slightly older than Sully,Joh

FAQs

What is the focus of the exhibition?

The exhibition centers on American figure drawings, featuring works from the Paul Magriel collection alongside a selection from Amherst College’s holdings.

Why does the foreword emphasize preserving artworks on paper?

Works of art on paper are fragile; acidic paper, unstable materials, and sensitivity to light require careful and sometimes expensive preservation.

How does the introduction describe early American figure drawing?

It explains that early American artists often studied abroad, especially in England, and that fine draughtsmanship was a prerequisite for becoming a professional painter.

Oct 13, 2026

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