Walking Sticks and Round-A-Bouts. For the Year 1801
London: Rudoloph Ackermann, 1801. Etching and engraving with hand coloring in watercolor, 11 5/16 × 13 7/8 inches (287 x 353 mm), trimmed inside the platemark. Color is extensive, vibrant and fresh, condition is excellent, with some adhesive residue from a former mount along the top sheet edge. Published May 8, 1801. Impressions of this work may be viewed in many important institutional collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 59.533.782.
Contrasting physical types are used here to satirize British summer fashions of 1801. Both women show off revealing muslin dresses with high waists and short sleeves, a classically inspired style introduced from France that revealed every defeat of the figure. Headdresses consist of simple veiled caps, and parasols are carried for shade. The male outfits reflect precepts promoted by Beau Brummel. With the goal a kind of relaxed athleticism, snugly fitting trousers are paired with high Hessian boots. A carefully tied white neck stock is combined with a fitted tailcoat and short waistcoat and the look completed with top hats, unpowdered hair, riding crops and monocles. Fashions for men and women alike reflect growing appreciation for "the natural" but this design demonstrates the consequences for persons with less than ideal physiques. -Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Item number: 1216
Price: $1,800.00
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