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DS2003-0817
Paulus Sandby. Ruralium Prospectuum (Portrait of Paul Sandby)
DS2003-0817

Paulus Sandby. Ruralium Prospectuum (Portrait of Paul Sandby)

Date1763
After work by Francis Cotes (1726-1770)
Engraver Edward Fisher (1722 - 1782)
OriginEngland, London
MediumBlack and white mezzotint engraving
DimensionsFramed: 18 1/4" x 13 1/2"; Sight size 15 1/2" x 10 3/4"
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1950-699
DescriptionLower margin reads: "Fra.s Cotes pinx.t/ E. Fisher fecit./ Paulus Sandby./ Rualium Prospectuum Pictor/ Publish'd according to Act of Parliament."
Label TextThis mezzotint engraving is a portrait of the landscape artist and engraver Paul Sandby (1731-1809). Artist Francis Cotes has depicted Sandby mid-process: perched on a window seat with crayon in hand sketching a subject outside the window. The landscape in the distance alludes to Sandby's artwork which frequently featured landscapes. It is a dynamic portrait of an artist engrossed in their work. The mezzotint is based on a painting by Cotes now in the collection of Tate Britain (N01943).

Paul Sandby was one of the most talented draughtsman of the eighteenth century. He began his career as a military draughtsman, trained in surveying and technical drawing. He left military service in 1751 and began painting landscapes in watercolor. He made his career as a landscape artist by engraving and publishing his own work. He and his brother Thomas, a landscape artist, teacher, and architect, were founding members of the Royal Academy of Arts.
ProvenanceNone known.