Oak Forest with a Pig

John Baptist Malchair|Anonymous, British, 19th century

early 19th century · Black and white chalk on gray paper · Drawings and Prints

British nineteenth-century viewers would have recognized these mature oaks as symbols of sturdy national character and, more concretely, a resource crucial to the country's famous "wooden walls"--the navy that protected the coasts. This composition by an unknown draftsman recalls precedents by the Dutch artist Antoine Waterloo (1609-1690), and the soft draftsmanship indicates a possible connection to the Oxford drawing master John Malchair (ca. 1770-1812). A pig searching for acorns in the foreground adds a note of whimsy.

Artist

John Baptist Malchair|Anonymous, British, 19th century

Date

early 19th century

Medium

Black and white chalk on gray paper

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of Robert Tuggle, 2008