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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1936.153.97
People
Denman Waldo Ross, American (Cincinnati, OH 1853 - 1935 London, England)
Title
Sketch of a Male Head and Torso
Other Titles
Alternate Title: Study of a Head
Classification
Drawings
Work Type
drawing
Date
19th-20th century
Culture
American
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/307309

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Graphite on buff wove paper
Dimensions
actual: 27.9 x 21.8 cm (11 x 8 9/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • inscription: upper margin, graphite, in artist's hand: Geometric System / The Right triangle of 90° 36° 54° / The Limit of Vision
  • inscription: lower margin, graphite, in artist's hand: The Central verticle [sic] / representing the Direction of Vision / Bisecting the [bust?] angle 36 we get the angle of 18 / which will bring us into the system of / a regular polygon of twenty sides.
  • inscription: verso, graphite, in artist's hand: Separate / sheet / Newspaper Half Tone / There is an enormous amount of photographic / half tones coming to us in the / newspapers and magazines. The painter / who lets these pass and pass away / misses a source of visual knowledge / particularly [instructive?] and stimulating for / a painter especially when the half tones / are enlarged and a reductive / analysis of forms is revealed. / As in the examples shows with / this statement. / The question [ ] to paint in / different distance and / how it gives vibration and liveliness / to [ ] surfaces is answered. / More than this [nine more lines of text, becoming increasingly illegible]

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Bequest of the artist to the Fogg Art Museum, 1936.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Bequest of Denman W. Ross, Class of 1875
Accession Year
1936
Object Number
1936.153.97
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu