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A seated couple, embracing

ca. 1865
Not on view
Burne-Jones likely made this drawing in the mid-1860s when he was sketching the Parthenon marbles at the British Museum, using chalks on colored paper. While a student at Oxford, Burne-Jones and his close friend William Morris decided to give up their theology degrees and instead pursue artistic careers. Since he lacked formal training, Burne-Jones sought advice from Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Ruskin--who lent him prints by Albrecht Dürer to copy--and George Frederic Watts, who advised close study of classical sculpture. Here he develops a figural composition from his interaction with Greek models.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: A seated couple, embracing
  • Artist: Sir Edward Burne-Jones (British, Birmingham 1833–1898 Fulham)
  • Date: ca. 1865
  • Medium: White chalk with graphite
  • Dimensions: sheet: 13 3/16 x 9 15/16 in. (33.5 x 25.2 cm)
  • Classification: Drawings
  • Credit Line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Theodore P. Donahue, 1997
  • Object Number: 1997.453
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

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The Love Song, Sir Edward Burne-Jones British, Oil on canvas
The Love Song
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On the Wharfe, Bolton Abbey, William Callow British, Watercolor
On the Wharfe, Bolton Abbey
William Callow
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Study of Eleven Heads, Jacques de Gheyn II Netherlandish, Pen and three shades of brown ink with black chalk on laid paper; framing lines in pen and brown ink and graphite
Study of Eleven Heads
Jacques de Gheyn II
late 16th–early 17th century
The Entombment, Sir Edward Burne-Jones British, Green, blue, brown and touches of reddish bodycolor, heightened with white gouache (bodycolor)
The Entombment
Sir Edward Burne-Jones
1879
Stroh Violin, George Evans & Co. English, Mahogany and aluminum, British
Stroh Violin
George Evans & Co.
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