Design for Trade Card [The Sun Life Assurance Society]
Crane was a prolific designer of a range of printed materials including playbills, magazine covers, private view invitations and posters. He also received many commissions from commercial organizations for documents including, as here, a certificate for an insurance company, Sun Life Assurance Society, which was founded in 1810. The dynamic design features a charioteer charging forward led by four galloping horses, silhouetted against a blazing sunburst, in reference to the company's name. Blank areas were left throughout the design to be filled later; the intended lettering is faintly indicated by the artist in graphite.
Artwork Details
- Title: Design for Trade Card [The Sun Life Assurance Society]
- Artist: Walter Crane (British, Liverpool 1845–1915 Horsham)
- Date: 1880–89
- Medium: Pen and brown ink over graphite
- Dimensions: sheet: 10 3/8 x 7 1/16 in. (26.4 x 18 cm)
- Classifications: Drawings, Ornament & Architecture
- Credit Line: The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1962
- Object Number: 62.595.1
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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