Studies of a Recumbent Polar Bear

Studies of a Recumbent Polar Bear

SK-A-3713

signature and date: ‘John M Swan / 1903’

Drawing living animals requires the patience of a saint. The British artist Johan Macallan Swan could wait hours for the animal to assume the desired pose. The second it did, he would dash off a quick sketch before the animal moved again. This polar bear, however, must have stayed still for some time. The artist was able to accurately study its thick coat.

draughtsman: John Macallan Swan (mentioned on object)

1903

pastelkrijt, op bruin papier

height 24 cm x width 36 cm

Mr and Mrs Drucker-Fraser Bequest, Montreux

bequest 1944

Public domain

…; on loan from Jean Charles Joseph Drucker (1862-1944, Montreux) and Maria Lydia Drucker-Fraser (1886-1944, Montreux), with 204 other drawings, to the museum, 1919;{Note RMA.} by whom bequeathed, with 204 other drawings, to the museum, 1944

Please note that this provenance was formulated with a special focus on provenance research for the years 1933-45 and could therefore be incomplete. There may be more (mostly earlier) provenance information known in the museum. In case this item has an uncertain or incomplete provenance for the years 1933-45, the Rijksmuseum welcomes information and assistance in the investigation and clarification of the provenance of all works during that era.

To refer to this object, please use the following persistent URL:

https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200109934